HOW WE BEAT CANCER DURING COVID-19

Ten news legend Hugh Riminton was awestruck by his wife Mary’s bravery as she endured the battle of her life

- Wendy Squires

Fighting breast cancer is hard enough for any woman, but having chemotherapy in a hospital during COVID-19 isolation is a new kind of hell, and it’s one that Ten journalist Hugh Riminton’s wife Mary Lloyd knows all too well.

Hugh had to isolate himself away from Mary, 45, who is a landscape photographer and journalist, so he could keep working while she underwent chemotherapy, which left her immune system acutely vulnerable to infection. “The experience was hard on the entire family, but especially challenging for Hugh,” reveals Mary of her husband, 59. “He was working every day, doing his best to bring us the supplies we needed, but not getting any of the uplift from being part of the family, hanging out with the kids or really having any contact with us. That was an enormous sacrifice he made to keep me safe and I’m incredibly grateful for all the support he’s given me.”

WELL-TRODDEN PATH

Stressing that her ordeal is something one in eight Australian women have to endure, Mary knows how fortunate she is to have such a supportive husband and three loving kids, Coco, 14, Jacob, 11, and Holly, eight, to help her through the worst of her battle.