Banbury woman calls for more support around early menopause after cancer treatment
It comes as part of a campaign launched on Menopause and Cancer Awareness Day
A woman from Banbury who went through menopause in her 30s following cancer treatment is backing calls for better support and information for young women in similar situations.
Danielle Standen was diagnosed with breast cancer in March 2018 while she was pregnant with her second child.
She underwent chemotherapy and surgery during her pregnancy, followed by radiotherapy and hormone therapy.
Danielle was able to carry her son to full term but was told early in her treatment that chemotherapy would put her into menopause.
She also carries a BRCA2 gene variant and later had her ovaries and fallopian tubes removed, resulting in surgical menopause.
Danielle was said going through this at a young age was very difficult.
"You don't really speak about it in your 30s. You're thinking sort of late 40s, early 50s," she said.
"So it was a huge shock to me physically and mentally."
She experienced symptoms including hot flushes, brain fog and low mood.
Danielle also says there not enough information about menopause available to her while she was going through cancer treatment.
"To be taking in information on menopause whilst you're going through cancer treatment is a big ask," she said.
"But having come out the other end, I wish that I had been given that information, even if it's just kind of drip-fed or just little pointers of where you can get support."
Calls for better national data
Danielle is supporting a new campaign from the charity Menopause and Cancer, which is calling for better national data on women who experience premature ovarian insufficiency or treatment-induced menopause following cancer treatment.
The 'Call for Change' campaign has been launched for Menopause and Cancer Awareness Day today.
The charity says that although national cancer data records information including patients' ages, sex, cancer type and treatment, there is no routinely published national figure showing how many young women subsequently experience premature ovarian insufficiency or treatment-induced menopause because of their treatment.
It is calling for better data collection, clearer information for patients before treatment begins, appropriate long-term follow-up and clearer routes into specialist menopause care.
According to figures cited by the campaign from the National Disease Registration Service, 2,516 girls and women under 30 were diagnosed with cancer in England in 2023.
Cancer treatments including chemotherapy, pelvic radiotherapy, stem cell transplantation, endocrine therapy and some forms of surgery can affect ovarian function and potentially cause premature menopause.
Campaigners say the consequences can extend beyond fertility, with potential effects on physical and mental health, sexual health and relationships.
Improving support after cancer treatment
Danielle says better information and support is particularly important because some women may experience menopause in their 20s and 30s, when they had never expected to face it.
She said: "It's so important that clinical professionals are there to support these young women."
For some, she added, the effect on fertility can also be life-changing, particularly if they have not yet had the children they hoped for.
"We are calling for change to make this heard and to put the information out there so that we know what we're dealing with, what we're facing and where we can get the help," she said.
The campaign is also asking the National Disease Registration Service and NHS England to clarify whether existing national data could be used to identify women who develop premature ovarian insufficiency or menopause following cancer treatment.
We have asked NHS England for a response.