Cancer has become a part of my journey but it’s not the whole story

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Bernie Nolan with her daughter Erin and husband Steve

After being told she could not be cured, and ­determined not to become known as “Cancer Girl”, Bernie Nolan started to write the story of her life.

Cancer has become a part of my journey but it’s not the whole story.There’s so much more to me than that. I’m a wife, mother, daughter, singer, actress, sister, friend and auntie. Those are the roles I want to define me.

Bernie became too ill  in March to carry on writing and husband Steve took over for the final pages.

When her cancer returned, Bernie was terrified by the effect the second bout might have on her child.Telling Erin was different this time. The diagnosis was much harder to put a positive spin on,” she says. How could I tell her it had spread throughout my body and was in my brain? How could I tell her it was incurable? There is nothing positive to say about that. As any mum knows, whatever happens in your life – good or bad – your first thought is always, ‘How much will this affect my child?’“I wanted to shield Erin. I couldn’t make it go away. I couldn’t tell her truthfully that everything was going to be OK, but I could try to keep her life the same. I was determined to do that.Now at home with her family, Bernie has accepted she is living her closing chapter. But these words are the legacy she leaves for her friends, her fans… and her daughter. In an emotional outpouring, she says Erin is the reason she will battle on.

I desperately want to see her grow into the beautiful woman I know she will be. For that reason alone I will never stop fighting.

Category : Living and Dying
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