FOR many cancer patients, the disease does not just destroy their body – it also attacks their soul.
It is no exaggeration when they say life will never be the same again and patients often underestimate the impact it will have on their lives.
For Christine Pratt, it was the recovery process after treatment that was a shock to her.
Having been diagnosed with breast cancer, she was mentally prepared for losing her hair, operations, time off work and hospital stays.
But what she did not expect was the fatigue that continued long after the doctors had bid her farewell and she was out of immediate danger.
When she needed help, she turned to the Cancer Survivorship Team at Castle Hill Hospital – a support group for those who have beaten cancer but still need help in returning to some sort of normality.
Although life will never be as it was before cancer, their help has been invaluable, which is why Christine has come up with an eye-catching way to raise money for the group.
"I don't know what I would have done it if wasn't for the girls at the Cancer Survivorship Team," she said.
"It doesn't matter how small your problem was, you could always ask them.
"We're really lucky to have such a fantastic service in East Yorkshire – not all places have groups like them."
The unique fundraising event sees people giving a bra, and whatever donation they can afford, in the hope 2,000 bras will be collected – enough to stretch right across the Humber Bridge.
Christine, 53, said: "I suffer from really bad fatigue as a result of my cancer, so I can't do a fun run or a charity walk or anything too energetic.
"So this was something I can organise from my armchair.
"We worked out it would take 1,700 bras to stretch between the two towers, so we thought we'd aim for 2,000 to make it more of a round number.
"It isn't just for people who have had breast cancer though – the bras are a visual thing and personal to me – but it's about fundraising for everyone who has suffered from cancer."
Christine, who is married to Martyn, 47, was diagnosed after having a mammogram at a mobile clinic which visited Hornsea.
She had felt a small lump, but dismissed the thought that it could be something more serious.
"I'd been feeling really tired, but I put that down to a change in my work – I'd gone from part-time to full-time," said Christine, who is mum to Jessica, 20, Mark, 34, and Philip, 29.
"I felt a small lump, but I'd had one before that was nothing, so I thought it was just one of those things.
"I had the mammogram on December 11, 2012 and then didn't think anything else of it.
"I was recalled in January last year and they said there was something there, but not to worry as lots of people had been recalled back.
"But when I saw it on the screen, it didn't look like the lump I'd had before."
The day after her 52nd birthday, on January 29, Christine was told she had breast cancer.
The lump in her right breast was a hormone feeding cancer, and therefore one of the most aggressive forms.
"It was a bit of a shock to say the least," she said.
"I'm not a smoker or a drinker and I had quite a healthy lifestyle.
"I had my first surgery in February, but it was unsuccessful so I had to go in again in March.
"After that, it was onto the radiotherapy and chemotherapy."
Christine had five rounds of chemotherapy – she should have had six but became extremely ill.
She then had radiotherapy for three weeks every day.
She said: "The chemotherapy shut my body down completely and I was hospitalised on three occasions because of it.
"I suffered from really chronic fatigue – it was pretty horrendous really.
"The radiotherapy causes fatigue as well and I've been fatigued ever since really."
Christine found the Cancer Survivorship Team a lifesaver when she did not know what help was available.
The team is based at The Queen's Centre at Castle Hill Hospital in Cottingham and holds support meetings and activities for those who have survived cancer.
Christine said: "Once all your treatment is over you have this pre-conceived idea that things will be back to normal.
"But in reality, you'll never go back to the life you had before – life is completely different and your outlook is completely different.
"I went from someone who worked full-time and being able to do anything I wanted to struggling to even get out of bed or function doing normal day-to-day things.
"It was really depressing and frustrating.
"I wanted to do things, but my body was unable – that is the thing I've struggled with most."
Through the Cancer Survivorship Team, Christine has met other cancer survivors who have been through similar experiences.
She knows they understand her when she talks about her fatigue issues.
"The Cancer Survivorship Team have done so much for me – that's why I wanted to fundraise for them," she said.
"When the hospital waved goodbye and I thought 'what now?' they were always on the end of the telephone."
The thousands of bras Christine is collecting will be strung across the Humber Bridge on Sunday, October 5, from 10am.
For every bra, people are also invited to give a cash donation.
Christine said: "Cancer is everywhere you go – everyone knows someone who has it, or has been through it themselves. This isn't about breast cancer – it is about all cancers."
Bras can be old ones that are no longer needed, or decorated in memory of a loved one.
The drop off points are Boots in The Prospect Centre in Hull, Jamie Goodlass hairdressers in Newbegin, Hornsea and The Queen's Centre at Castle Hill Hospital.
For more information, email chris28j@ hotmail.co.uk or call 07903 321689.
For more information on the Cancer Survivorship Team, call 01482 461091.
Cancer team shortlisted for awardTHE Cancer Survivorship Team, which is jointly funded by Macmillan Cancer Support and Hull and East Yorkshire Hospitals NHS Trust, was set up two years ago to help people of all ages through their recovery.
The team, which is based at Castle Hill Hospital in Cottingham, provides support not just in the physical sense, but also offers help with emotional, social, financial and psychological matters.
Now the team has been shortlisted for a 2014 Macmillan Professionals Award in Team Excellence.
Anna Binks, survivorship programme manager, said: "We've had an amazing couple of years since the team was first set up and it's fantastic to have been shortlisted for this award.
"But what is most rewarding for us is to see so many of our patients not just surviving after cancer treatment, but positively flourishing."
The Cancer Survivorship Team will find out whether they have been successful at an awards ceremony for Macmillan professionals in Birmingham on November 13.
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