Calm Under Fire - Sarah's Cancer Courage

The bubbly broadcaster’s shock diagnosis

- Sophie Neville

Radio star Sarah Gandy was just 10 when she lost her beloved mum Judy to cancer. Now, 26 years on, she’s facing the same cruel disease, but rather than succumb to fear or panic, Sarah is staying positive, telling us she’s determined she’ll come out the other side of her battle with breast cancer.

“Attitude is everything,” says the courageous broadcaster, welcoming us into her West Auckland home just a day after her first chemotherapy treatment. “I’m thinking of it like a long haul flight – there will be some rough parts but it’ll be paradise when I get there.”

With her film-editor husband Luke Haigh at her side, and their beloved pooches Poppy and Pico draped across her lap, Sarah is tired and nauseous, but she’s bravely sharing her story in the hope it will raise breast cancer awareness, especially for younger women like herself.

“If I can get even one person to give themselves a pat-down after reading this, then that’s a job well done,” she asserts.

First sign

Sarah’s story begins in November last year, when she was shocked to find a lump in her right breast. She’d been regularly checking herself after her good friend, Step Dave actress Delaney Tabron, was diagnosed with breast cancer two years ago. But Sarah, 36, admits she never expected to find anything suspicious, especially as her focus had always been on her increased risk of bowel cancer, given her mother succumbed to the disease at just 39.

Sarah visited her GP, who told her that while it was unlikely to be anything serious, she would refer her for a mammogram and ultrasound. Despite having medical insurance, Sarah felt comfortable going through the public system and was given an appointment for two months later, on January 23.