Sky News’ Jacquie Beltrao praises ‘hero’ professor who saved her life amid cancer battle
Sky News presenter Anna Jones burst into tears on live television on Sunday as she interviewed her colleague Jacquie Beltrao about the fight against breast cancer.
Sports commentator Jacquie, 58, spoke about scientist Professor Andrew Tutt who saved her life three years ago after being told she had stage four bread cancer that had spread to her spine and legs, leading her to fear she had only months to live .
But after being given a drug called olaparib, which was previously used for ovarian cancer, Jacquie is now cancer free.
Former Olympic gymnast Jacquie told Anna how she hugged Professor Andrew and told him ‘you are a hero’, making Anna visibly moved.
Jacquie said on the Sky News breakfast show: ‘It works for a lot of people, but it works to varying degrees.
Emotional: Sky News presenter Anna Jones (pictured) burst into tears on live television on Sunday as she interviewed her colleague Jacquie Beltrao about the fight against breast cancer
Disease: Sports commentator Jacquie, 58, spoke about scientist Professor Andrew Tutt who saved her life three years ago after being told she had stage four bread cancer
‘I’m one of the people for whom it works 100 percent.
“It won’t work forever. You should have that in mind.
It’s not a permanent solution. It’s so new they don’t even know how long it will work, but anyway, I’ll take it. Who would exercise this morning if it weren’t for him?’
Anna said, “Well, we are very grateful to him. You are amazing Jackie, really amazing. They did a great job…”
Olaparib, also known as Lynparza, is a targeted drug used for a number of cancers in people with a change in the BRCA1 or BRCA2 gene.
The drug is a PARP inhibitor, with PARP being a protein that helps damaged cells repair themselves. Olaparib prevents PARP from working.
Some cancer cells use PARP to keep their DNA healthy, so when olaparib prevents PARP from repairing DNA damage, the cancer cells die.
Jacquie revealed in June 2020 that she was facing a second battle with breast cancer after doctors first told her she had the disease in 2013.
Difficult: Jacquie revealed in June 2020 that she was facing a second battle with breast cancer after doctors first told her she had the disease in 2013
The mum-of-three found a new ‘tiny’ lump during the 2020 lockdown and started chemotherapy soon after.
Jacquie admitted in July 2021 that it had been a “living nightmare” since her grade three diagnosis at the time.
After being diagnosed with breast cancer for the first time in 2013, for which she underwent five cycles of chemotherapy in four months.
She said in a video on social media at the time: ‘So during the lockdown I followed my own advice, did a checkup and found a small, small, small lump here.
“I had it checked out and had a biopsy taken right away and it turns out to be grade three breast cancer, much worse than the first one I had.
“I’m sharing this because it felt weird going back to work on Sky and being on social media and pretending everything was shiny and perfect and fun when it wasn’t.”
Celebration: Jacquie said she felt ‘incredible’ after getting a clear scan during her battle against stage 4 breast cancer in 2021
In 2020 Jacquie told Hello! magazine that she “didn’t realize” that breast cancer could return. “Facing it again felt like a kick in the stomach,” she added.
“When I was told it was incurable, I burst into tears and thought, ‘That’s it, I’m going to die.’
“I felt so sad that I would never go to my daughter’s wedding, watch my sons graduate, or become a grandmother.”
Jacquie is mother to sons Tiago, 21, and Jorge, 19, and daughter Amelia, 23, with her Brazilian-born husband Eduardo.
In July 2021, Jacquie said she felt “incredible” after being told after a scan that there was “no evidence” of her cancer.
Celebrating receiving a clear scan amid her battle with stage 4 breast cancer, she rejoiced: “I’m living proof that anything is possible.”
“I had feared the worst and had times when I heard a piece of music and thought, ‘That’s good for my funeral.’
“There were dark days, so to hear that there is now no evidence of cancer is unbelievable.
“I was expecting bad news or, at best, that my aggressive cancer hadn’t gotten worse. But to hear that there is no evidence for it now is beyond my wildest dreams.’
She added that she thought she only had two years left to live but can now “enjoy life again” before adding that she is “living proof that anything is possible.”
Breast cancer is one of the most common cancers in the world, affecting more than two MILLION women each year
Breast cancer is one of the most common cancers in the world. Each year there are more than 55,000 new cases in the UK and the disease claims the lives of 11,500 women. In the US, it affects 266,000 people and kills 40,000 each year. But what causes it and how can it be treated?
What is breast cancer?
Breast cancer arises from a cancer cell that develops in the lining of a duct or lobule in one of the breasts.
When the breast cancer has spread to the surrounding breast tissue, it is called an ‘invasive’ breast cancer. Some people are diagnosed with “carcinoma in situ,” where no cancer cells have grown beyond the duct or lobule.
Most cases develop in women over the age of 50, but younger women are sometimes affected. Breast cancer can develop in men, although this is rare.
Staging means how big the cancer is and whether it has spread. Stage 1 is the earliest stage and stage 4 means the cancer has spread to another part of the body.
The cancer cells are graded from low, which means slow growth, to high, which means fast growth. High-grade cancers are more likely to come back after being treated first.
What Causes Breast Cancer?
A cancerous tumor starts with one abnormal cell. The exact reason why a cell becomes cancerous is unclear. Something is thought to damage or alter certain genes in the cell. This makes the cell abnormal and multiply ‘out of control’.
Although breast cancer can develop for no apparent reason, there are some risk factors that can increase the chance of developing breast cancer, such as heredity.
What Are the Symptoms of Breast Cancer?
The usual first symptom is a painless breast lump, although most breast lumps are not cancerous and are fluid-filled cysts, which are benign.
The first place where breast cancer usually spreads is the lymph nodes in the armpit. When this happens, you get a swelling or lump in an armpit.
How is breast cancer diagnosed?
- Initial assessment: A doctor examines the breasts and armpits. They may perform tests such as a mammogram, a special X-ray of the breast tissue that can indicate the possibility of tumors.
- Biopsy: A biopsy is when a small sample of tissue is removed from an area of the body. The sample is then examined under a microscope to look for abnormal cells. The sample can confirm or rule out cancer.
If you are confirmed to have breast cancer, further tests may be needed to assess whether it has spread. For example, blood tests, an ultrasound of the liver or a chest x-ray.
How is breast cancer treated?
Treatment options that may be considered include surgery, chemotherapy, radiotherapy, and hormone treatment. Often a combination of two or more of these treatments is used.
- Surgery: Breast-conserving surgery or removing the affected breast, depending on the size of the tumor.
- Radiotherapy: A treatment that uses high-energy beams of radiation aimed at cancerous tissue. This kills cancer cells or stops cancer cells from multiplying. It is mainly used in addition to surgery.
- Chemotherapy: A treatment for cancer using anticancer drugs that kill cancer cells or prevent them from multiplying.
- Hormone treatments: Some types of breast cancer are affected by the “female” hormone estrogen, which can stimulate cancer cells to divide and multiply. Treatments that lower the level of these hormones or prevent them from working are commonly used in people with breast cancer.
How successful is the treatment?
The outlook is best in those who are diagnosed when the cancer is still small and has not spread. Surgical removal of a tumor at an early stage can then give a good chance of a cure.
Routine mammography offered to women between the ages of 50 and 70 means that more breast cancers are diagnosed and treated at an early stage.
For more information visit breastcancernow.org or call the toll-free helpline on 0808 800 6000