Roll With It

Helen Wortsmann, 36, from Southsea, had a unique way of fighting breast cancer...

Skating effortlessly along a track, I felt incredibly free.

The sound of my rollerskates on the ground was a comfort, and as I whizzed along, I forgot about the stresses of every day life.

I’d started roller derby back in 2012, after being inspired by the film Whip It.

Going to a skate park in Southsea, I’d soon joined a team – the Portsmouth Roller Wenches – and we ended up taking part in British championships.

It was a great workout, and I loved every minute.

I’d taken a break when I had my son Isaac in December 2017, but now, in March last year, I was back on the track.

Later that night, as I breastfed Isaac, I suddenly felt a large lump on my left breast.

‘That’s odd,’ I said to my husband Karl, 37.

‘That wasn’t there before.’

The next day at my GP, I was told it was probably mastitis – a build up of milk caused by regular breastfeeding.

But a few weeks later, back at roller derby, I crashed into one of my teammates on the track.

And afterwards, my left breast was extremely painful, purple and bruised.

I’d been injured playing roller derby before – it was all part of the game – but I knew a knock like that shouldn’t have caused so much damage.