A mum-of-two who was given just months to live is defying the odds and has gone back to work while battling breast cancer.
Dawn Wilson, 37, was initially diagnosed with stage 3 cancer, which had spread to her lymph nodes, after finding a lump in her breast in 2014.
The teacher, from Cardiff, underwent extensive treatment and was given the all clear in 2015, but in 2017 she discovered that her cancer had returned.
Dawn was told she had just 11 months to live, a devastating blow to her family as her ex-husband Iain, the father of her children, battled the fatal neurodegenerative Huntington’s disease, WalesOnline reports.
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But she is still alive and fighting the disease almost three years on.
Her return to work was difficult and there have been times when she has been very unwell, including when she suffered kidney failure.
Dawn, mum to daughters Imogen, 14, and Madeleine, 11, said: "I was really, really poorly. They took me off chemotherapy for about a year.
"I know at some point I'll have to go back on chemotherapy, but I'm hoping it'll be in tablet form so it doesn't take over with hospital visits and things as much."
She said her daughters have been "really brave" over the past few years.
Dawn has been teaching design technology at Mary Immaculate High School in Wenvoe since September and has been promoted to head of department.
She missed teaching after she was forced to take a break, and working again has "really changed things" for her family.
Dawn said: "Normally people are quite hesitant taking on someone in my position.
"When we moved to Wenvoe I saw a school right across the road was advertising.
"I went to see the head teacher and told him the position – I explained that I have a terminal illness, but I was managing it well at the moment.
"It went from there really."
She added: "I feel very fortunate to have had an opportunity like this – that they are mindful of my situation but recognise that I have a lot to offer the profession and students.
"I love to teach. One of the hardest things for me during my diagnosis was not being able to teach.
"The staff are brilliant and the kids are wonderful. It's been wonderful from the start."
During her treatment Dawn has taken a drug called Olaparib, which is usually prescribed to patients with ovarian cancer.
Doctors wanted to see if it could help her in her battle with breast cancer.
She said: "With the sort of cancer I have I was running out of options. It was quite a frightening time. The prognosis they gave me was 11 months – and that was two-and-a-half to three years ago now.
"I have been very lucky to have some very big players in the cancer industry looking at my case. My situation is very unusual. I'm quite able to talk about my disease without getting emotional about it."
Dawn now campaigns for Know Your Lemons , an initiative aimed at educating women about the signs of breast cancer, and works with the team as a patient advisor.
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