09/10/2026
The Tickled Pink awareness posters displayed in our St Leonards-on-Sea store played a huge part in our colleague Donna's decision to check herself – and when she did she found a small lump in her breast which turned out to be cancerous.
Seeing those reminders every day helped her to recognise what to look out for and encouraged her to take action. In August last year Donna, who's 46, found a tiny lump, less than a centimetre, just under her ni**le. At first, she thought it might be a harmless cyst, something that would disappear on its own, but after a few days it remained so, with a gentle nudge from her partner, John, she made the decision to visit her GP. A mammogram and biopsies were carried out, and within three weeks she found out she had Stage 1 breast cancer. In October, she underwent a full mastectomy, along with the removal of four lymph nodes under her arm, and then started chemotherapy. She's since made a great recovery and has returned to work.
Donna said: "My mum had breast cancer at about the same age as me so I was kind of aware, but I'm one those people who think everything's okay and never go to a doctor. I see all the Tickled Pink stuff at work every day. The posters are everywhere, even the toilets. You can't miss them. Their message worked as it made me very aware, and so I thought I'd better check myself. I'd like to think that a lot of our customers are seeing the messages too and checking themselves. The earlier you catch things, the easier it is to deal with it. Thankfully I caught mine early, so it was relatively easy to get rid of.
"Tickled Pink is a great charity and it's brilliant in raising awareness. I've always supported Tickled Pink in the store and worn the T shirts, we all do here. Our community champion Wendy always makes sure we are up for it."
