Sarah, Duchess of York has been blown away by public support, following her second cancer diagnosis.
The author, 64, was diagnosed with malignant melanoma, a form of skin cancer, two days into the New Year after spending much of last year recovering from breast cancer.
In the months following her mastectomy last year, Sarah spread awareness of the importance of screening far and wide, giving interviews and appearing on TV to share her experience.
Her candid and humorous approach – she refers to her reconstructed breast as “Derek” – inspired many to attend their mammograms, including Good Morning Britain presenter Susanna Reid, who said she’d ignored hers until their conversation.
There has already been a massive surge in people looking for information on melanoma.
NHS England said there was one visit every 13 seconds to the NHS website for information on melanoma in the two days following the announcement earlier this month.
Some 13,662 visits were made in 48 hours – more than eight times higher than the same time during the previous week (1,624 visits).
A source close to the Duchess said: “Her intention in making this news public was to get the message out about the importance of being vigilant about checking the size, shape, colour and texture of moles. She’s delighted to hear that her experience is having some positive effect.”
A friend of Sarah, meanwhile, tells us: “She’s really keen to get the public health message out there. She was very struck by the reaction she got when she talked about her breast cancer diagnosis in the summer. She has a platform and she will use it. If something positive can come from that, she’s all for it.”
The Duchess shared her news publicly after spending a few weeks recuperating at the exclusive Mayrlife clinic in Austria, which is her “haven”, according to friends.
Now, back in Windsor, surrounded by her beloved family, Sarah is determined this latest setback will not slow her down.
As her daughters Princesses Beatrice, 35, and Eugenie, 33, rally round, allowing her to spend plenty of time with her grandchildren, Sarah exclusively tells HELLO!: “They support me through thick and thin, not least my recent illness. We call each other ‘The Tripod’ because we prop each other up, come what may.”
