Sarah Beeny has reflected on telling her children about her cancer diagnosis as her heart goes out to Kate Middleton having to have the same conversation with her young kids.
Future Queen Kate, 42, announced on Friday that she had been diagnosed with cancer and was undergoing chemotherapy, following major abdominal surgery in January.
Together with heir to the throne Prince William, Kate has three children: George, 10, Charlotte, eight, and five-year-old Louis.
Announcing the devastating news with a video message on Friday, the Princess of Wales shared that she and William had taken time to explain the news to their three children.
This has brought back heartbreaking memories for A New Life In The Countryside star Sarah.
The TV star, 52, was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2022 and has been receiving treatment to huge success, which she has readily praised the NHS and researchers for.
She and her husband Graham are parents to four sons: Billy, 19, Charlie, 17, Rafferty, 15, and 12-year-old Laurie.
Speaking to The Sun on Sunday, Sarah praised ‘incredible’ Kate for her ‘bravery and grace’ and said ‘I know she will get through this’.
‘But as a mum the first thing you think when you hear the C-word is, “My kids need me, I can’t leave my kids.”‘
Remembering telling her sons about her diagnosis, Sarah noted they were older, which made it ‘easier in a way,’ but Kate and William’s children are so young — ‘too young to fully understand.’
Sarah immediately broke the news to her sons, after eldest son Billy asked her straight out ‘you haven’t got cancer, have you?’
She was ‘very matter of fact’ about it and told them ‘it’s going to be fine, I’ve just got to have some treatment,’ and promised her sons she ‘wouldn’t lie.’
‘It was scary at times for them and of course they struggled. The truth is, when you have cancer your entire family goes through it too.’
Her children are in a band with their father Graham: The Entitled Sons, and in 2023 the Glastonbury rockers released new track These Days in aid of Cancer Research UK.
Speaking to Metro.co.uk at Glastonbury, eldest Billy revealed Sarah ‘burst into tears’ when she first heard the track in all its glory — after banging on the walls and telling them to ‘shut up’ when they were putting the song together.
Singer Charlie explained they wanted the proceeds to go to Cancer Research UK as they wanted to ‘give back,’as none of them had dreams of becomig ‘doctors or scientists’ but could make a difference in this way.
Sarah was diagnosed with the disease in August 2022, after losing her own mum to the disease when she was just 10.
And in April last year, she shared the happy news that she had been given the all-clear, after having her final round of chemotherapy.
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