A MUM with cancer has told how she has been busy planning her 'dream' wedding.

Kerry Rowson, from Blackburn, saw her world turned upside down earlier this year when she was told she had breast cancer.

But the 31-year-old said it has not stopped her from getting on with her life and she plans to marry partner James Anders next October.

Lancashire Telegraph:

Ms Rowson, of Fern Crescent, said: "It was obviously a huge shock being told I had cancer at such a young age.

"But I've not let it stop me from getting on with my life.

"We've booked and planned and paid for the wedding for next October at Stirk House in Gisburn and we're both so excited."

Ms Rowson, who works in finance for Lancashire Care Foundation Trust, first discovered something was amiss in April when spotted a lump on her breast while in the bath.

Knowing that something wasn’t right, Ms Rowson went to see her local GP who referred her to Burnley General Hospital for further checks.

Not long after, the hospital test results revealed the lump was a cancer – and in an instant,Ms Rowson's world changed.

Lancashire Telegraph:

Ms Rowson said: “This year was supposed to be an amazing year of wedding plans and excitement but suddenly I was being told I had cancer, and everything changed.

“The first thing I asked when I got my diagnosis was ‘will I lose my hair?’ which now seems so shallow but I’d be growing my hair for our amazing wedding next year – and we all love to look our best!”

Ms Rowson was referred for treatment at Blackburn Royal Hospital and was given chemotherapy to treat the four centimetre tumour.

Four months on and Ms Rowson has now completed her chemotherapy. She will have surgery at the end of September at Royal Preston Hospital to remove remaining cancerous tissue and reconstruct her breast area.

Lancashire Telegraph:

She added: “I could not have got through this without the amazing staff on the ward who went above and beyond to make a hard time easier any way they could. It felt fantastic to ring the bell at the hospital to mark the end of chemo last month.

“I kept reminding myself that every day was one step closer to the end of my nightmare and just kept focusing on my the beginning of my life as Mr and Mrs next year.”

And Ms Rowson and her sister Emma are launching Stand Up To Cancer, a joint fundraising campaign from Cancer Research UK and Channel 4.

She has called on people to make a stand against cancer by getting sponsored to wear outrageous, funny or unpredictable clothing to support life-saving research.

Stand Up To Cancer’s ‘Fortnight of Fundraising’ takes place from October 11 to October 25.