Breast cancer awareness: Ali Bastian shares her story

Happy Mum Happy Baby

Giovanna Fletcher

Kids & Family

4.8 • 5.7K Ratings

🗓️ 20 May 2025

⏱️ 72 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

For a special episode dedicated to breast cancer awareness, this week Giovanna sits down with actress and mum of two, Ali Bastian

Last year, while breastfeeding her youngest daughter, Ali began experiencing severe pain and discovered a lump in her breast. Despite her concerns, she was told it was likely a blocked duct from feeding.

Ali opens up about what followed - her breast cancer diagnosis, chemotherapy, and a mastectomy. She reflects on what it meant to really show up for herself during that time, and the love and support she found in unexpected places in what can be an incredibly lonely journey.

TRIGGER WARNING: This episode contains discussion around cancer. If you think you may find this difficult to listen to, please choose another episode x

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Transcript

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0:00.0	Coming up on Happy Mum, Happy Baby.
0:03.8	I had had a block duct before.
0:06.2	It was quite similar and I kind of understand why the doctors could confuse it.
0:11.3	Well, and also because your boobs change so much when you're feeding.
0:14.0	They go hard.
0:14.8	Oh my God.
0:15.3	And like the size of my head.
0:17.2	I did have this feeling of like this isn't changing.
0:20.7	This is actually feeling like part of the structure of my breast and I had this feeling of like this isn't changing this is actually feeling like part of the
0:22.4	structure of my breast and I have this sort of like sinking feeling about it as the days rolled on.
0:28.8	The first step for me to move forward felt like really owning where I was.
0:32.6	This is it.
0:33.2	This is me right now.
0:34.8	Showing up felt important being like here I am with my bald head doing chemo. This is what right now. Showing up felt important. Being like, here I am with my bald head doing chemo.
0:40.6	This is what's happening.
0:41.9	And then so many other women being like, I'm doing it also.
0:46.7	Yeah, felt really like connecting.
0:50.5	It does feel like a lonely journey when you're on this one.
0:54.3	I don't even know really how to put it into words, but there is hope and there is, there's love and there's support that comes from places that you never would have imagined.
1:04.0	This episode is brought to you by Femm Fresh, the UK's number one intimate hygiene brand.
1:10.7	I think we can all agree that mothers are pretty incredible.
1:14.6	But with all the highs, there are also some lows, and sadly, some mums go through these
	...

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