Amy Dowden says Strictly ‘literally saved my life’ as it led to her breast cancer diagnosis and says illness has taken away what she ‘loves most’

Amy Dowden has revealed her time on Strictly Come Dancing 'saved her life' as it led to her breast cancer diagnosis.

The professional dancer, 33, discovered a lump in her breast the day before her honeymoon in 2022 and completed her chemo treatment in November.

Amy appeared on This Morning alongside Giovanna Fletcher on Wednesday and credited the BBC show with saving her life, but said her diagnosis has taken away what she 'loves most'.

In 2021, Amy was linked to Giovanna's husband, McFly frontman Tom Fletcher, during which she became close friends with his wife.

Giovanna happened to organize a trek to Wales for the charity CoppaFeel! when someone backed out at the last minute – and invited Amy to join them.

Amy confessed that the trip opened her eyes to the importance of regularly checking her breasts for any changes.

She said: “It was a great group and one woman said she was running because she had lost her friend in her early 20s and I thought, wait a minute, here I am trying to raise awareness and I'm not controlling myself.

“I literally saved my life by hooking up with the Fletchers. I got to know my own breast and I knew something was wrong.

'I'm still on my honeymoon. I found it the day before I went on my honeymoon and didn't tell my husband.”

Amy and Giovanna are now planning another charity trip next year, which Amy says will be a 'round-the-clock' moment.

She completed her chemotherapy treatment in November, but said her cancer journey is far from over.

The chemo caused neuropathy, which caused her to temporarily lose feeling in her hands and feet, causing her to land on her foot at an odd angle and break her metatarsal bone.

She continued, “I take each day as it comes. I thought that once I rang the bell, everything would be fine, but it hasn't been like that, I find it a lot harder mentally now. The journey is not over yet.

'What I love most has been taken from me and I find that so cruel.'

It comes after Dragons' Den star Sara Davies revealed she helped convince Amy to undergo chemotherapy.

She appeared on Loose Women on Monday to talk about her friendship with the dancer, who she met when she appeared on the show in 2021.

Sara said Amy was reluctant to have chemotherapy because she feared losing her hair and not being able to dance on the current Strictly series.

Sara explained on the show: 'I was with her when she made the decision, she had had the mastectomy and she thought that was it when they took it out.

'And she immediately thought about chemo' 'I don't want to have it because I don't want to lose my hair, otherwise I won't be able to dance strictly this year'.

'But the doctors told her to do that and I said, 'If the doctors say you have you!'. It's life-changing, you have to embrace it.'

Amy was also recently rushed to hospital after experiencing renewed anxiety following her battle with breast cancer.

The star was diagnosed with a blood clot in her lung, but is recovering well.

She said her co-star Neil Jones rushed to help her after she needed injections for blood clots following a hospital stay.

She has been taking blood-thinning tablets during her treatment since August, but since the clot in the lung she has switched to stronger injections.

Taking to her Instagram Story on Sunday after attending one of Strictly's live shows in London, she said: 'So a big shout out to Mr Neil Jones who helped me out last night because he's like a real beast.

“I've had so many people message me and say, 'Yeah, they're nasty, aren't they?'

Speaking about her health in general, she added: 'I've got two blood clots in my arm, and now that I've had another blood clot in my lung, I obviously need something stronger.

“So I started with the shots, which I've gotten used to,” she said, before admitting she was “rubbish” about giving herself jabs.