Labrador saves vet's life after headbutt prompts breast scan and reveals cancer

A grandmother and practicing veterinary nurse from Leeds says a labrador saved her life after head-butting her in the chest.

Angie Shaw was at work when she was knocked over by a dog she was helping onto the consultation table – an incident which caused a lump in her chest.

A week later, the lump was still causing her pain, so Angie decided to go to the GP to get it checked out.

She was then referred for scans and biopsies, which revealed she had a fast-growing form of breast cancer.

Just over two weeks after her diagnosis, Angie had an operation to remove the tumour – which had already grown by two millimetres since the initial discovery.

‘The initial lump (caused by the labrador) was purely coincidental and had nothing to do with the cancer,’ Angie said.

‘But if the pet hadn’t head-butted me, the cancer wouldn’t have shown up for nine to ten months, by which point it would have spread.

‘It would have been too late. That pet saved my life.

‘When we turned him over, he head-butted me by my left breast, towards my breastbone.

‘A decent-sized lump appeared. I left it for a week, but it was sore, so I got a doctor’s appointment the next day.

‘I thought it was a cyst. When I was told that I would have to have surgery, chemotherapy and then radiotherapy, my whole world fell apart.’

Doctors say that without the dog knocking into her, the tumour would have taken another ten months to be detected due to its positioning. And, with her next mammogram not due for another nine months, the invasive grade three cancer would have been too advanced for Angie to receive life-saving treatment.

The grandmother of three had six rounds of chemotherapy which lasted 18 weeks.

She has now finished her treatment and is celebrating being cancer-free.

Now Angie is encouraging others to check for lumps stating that ‘early diagnosis is so important.’

Angie said: ‘I thought if I could save one person’s life by encouraging them to get lumps checked, that’s my job done.

‘Breast cancer is almost a taboo subject, but it is nothing to be ashamed of.

‘There’s nothing I have done to cause it. There’s nothing I could have done to prevent it.

‘I am lucky – because we found it in time. I lost some of my hair during the chemotherapy. It is a small price to pay.’

Angie, who qualified as a veterinary nurse in 2011, said that she stayed ‘positive’ throughout her diagnosis as ‘everyone thinks a cancer diagnosis is the death warrant.’

She added: ‘I thought “I have too much to do to let it get in the way of my life.”

‘An experience like that gives you a whole different perspective.

‘You realise how special life is and how quickly it can turn around. I have been given a second chance.

‘You learn to make the most of who and what is important to you.’

Louise Mallinson, the clinical director of Beechwood Vets, where Angie works, described her colleague as an ‘incredibly brave’ person.

She said: ‘The way Angie has tackled her cancer diagnosis and treatment has been absolutely inspirational.

‘Angie is fantastic with both our patients and clients, and we’re very lucky to have her as part of the team.

‘We are all incredibly proud of her and couldn’t be happier that she has been given the all-clear.’

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