A DAUGHTER from Clydebank has spoken of what her mum’s survival from cancer has meant to her.

Jenna Hughes, 29, is bravely speaking out in a bid to save other people's lives by getting them to get any suspect symptoms they discover checked out early.

She is just the latest person to tell her ‘My Survivor’ story, as part of the Scottish Government’s Detect Cancer Early campaign, which aims to encourage people to act early if they have any concerns about their health.

Fear of being diagnosed is shown to still be a main reason for people not going to get symptoms checked out, so the campaign seeks to highlight that more people in Scotland are now surviving cancer than ever before, as well as drive home the fact that early detection plays a huge part in that survival.

Jenna's mum, Alison Daly, visited her GP after becoming concerned about a lump she found, and was diagnosed with breast cancer in August 2015.

The 58-year-old was then referred to the breast clinic where, after further tests, she was told it was early stage breast cancer.

Jenna said: “I was with mum when she got the news from the consultant. She’s had benign cysts on her breasts in the past, so we expected the lump she found to be another one of them. It was a complete shocker when we were told, they’re just the words you don’t want to hear."

Alison was informed that her treatment would involve a lumpectomy followed by radiotherapy, with surgery scheduled for September 2015. However due to issues with her blood pressure, this had to be delayed.

When the surgery went ahead two months later in November, the cancer had spread to Alison's lymph nodes, meaning she required a lumpectomy, node removal and chemotherapy before radiotherapy.

Alison said: “I was told that even though the cancer had spread, it I would have a 94 per cent chance of survival after the treatments because of how early it had been found.

"You absolutely have to go to your doctor if you are concerned. I know it can be scary, but I would just tell people to try not to be too afraid of going because if it’s found earlier, there’s so much more they can do. Being diagnosed was hard, but life does go on.”

During Alison’s chemotherapy, Jenna admits that things did get hard at times, and it was difficult to see her mum going through the treatment.

Jenna said: “I went with mum to her first chemotherapy session and to as many as I could after that. She’s always the strong one for everybody else in the family so it was really hard seeing her be that vulnerable. We all just realised that it was up to us to take on her role and show the strength for her that she always shows us when we need it.

“I think one of the things that really helped spur her on was that my son, Nathaniel, was only a few months old when she was diagnosed so she wanted to make sure that she’d be well for him.

“She’s not the type to take things lying down anyway so after she got over the initial shock she was practically back to her normal self.”

Alison added: “When I retired, I became really bored and when my chemotherapy started nothing in my life felt normal. I went back to doing two shifts a week with the nurse bank and it really helped keep me sane because it brought a bit of normality. I also relied hugely on the support of the Maggie’s Centre and Calman Centre, as it helped chatting to people going through the same thing.”

Jenna also told how Alison’s experience has brought them even closer.

She said: “It’s amazing having mum back to full health and being around for all of the big milestones, like my wedding in August last year. I’m also expecting my second baby in May so she’ll be here for another one. We’re all just so proud of how strong she’s been and how brave she was throughout it all.”

People all over Scotland are being asked to share their story about what a loved one’s cancer survival has meant to them, using the #MySurvivor hashtag, in order to tell the other side of the story.

For more information visit getcheckedearly.org.