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Privacy Notice Sara Titchen, 24, from Hertfordshire was just like any other girl her age and whilst getting ready for a night out, stopped to film her hair style. In a twist of fate, Sara spotted an unsuspecting sign that something was amiss when she looked back at the footage – changing her life forever. She opened up to OK! to explain how even though she ‘felt healthy, fit and energised’, Hodgkin’s Lymphoma – the most common cancer in teenagers and young adults – still became a part of her life. She’s now on a mission to help others after receiving support from The Little Princess Trust with a massive fundraising event.
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“It was just one month after my 24th birthday in May last year. I felt healthy. I felt fit. I felt kind of energised. I was getting ready for a night out and I had my hair in a slick back ponytail. I filmed a video of myself to make sure it all looked neat but when I watched the video back, I noticed that my eyes looked really uneven. One of them looked droopy and my pupils were uneven. If I’m honest, I didn’t really think much into it at the time. I just thought ‘that looks weird.’ I didn’t correlate it to being ill – I just thought, ‘Oh, maybe I’m tired.’ I booked an appointment at my optician to have it checked anyway and was thankful my vision was great. They measured my pupils, and could see that they weren’t even so they booked me for a telephone appointment with my GP in three weeks time. I did what we all do and turned to Google though. The results were terrifying so I decided to go straight to Moorfields, the eye specialists in London that very same day. They tested me for something called Horner Syndrome and sent me to A&E for a CAT scan… less than 24 hours later and by 1am the following morning I was diagnosed with cancer.
Sara Titchen is pictured with her natural hair after cutting it to a bob from waist length, before shaving it
Subsequent examinations revealed lumps in my neck which unbeknown to me are a common symptom of lymphoma. It was terrifying because I didn’t know anyone my age who who has cancer. I’m sure it’s the same for everyone on that first night when they find out, but of course, I thought the worst. All I knew is that I’d actually had an uneven eye for quite a few months because I went back on my photos of me and I could see I had it in my graduation, which was a year ago. I was thinking, ‘Oh, my gosh, I’ve had it for a year. I’m stage four. That’s going to be untreatable.’ I just went into panic mode. Luckily within a few days, I I was given the reassurance that lymphoma is very treatable. I had Hodgkin’s lymphoma, which is actually the most common amongst people under 25 and they aim to cure as they treat it. I knew pretty early on I was going to have to have chemo, so I opted to go through fertility preservation. At 24, I never thought about having a baby or my future and all of a sudden I was having conversations about adoption and egg donors and just things that I shouldn’t have to think about when I’m not in a position to have a child. It was just so overwhelming and really scary. I did the fertility treatment, which is injecting yourself every day – I’m not great with needles but by now I had moved home to my mum’s so she injected me every day – and then had the IVF, which worked so I hopefully have some viable eggs for the future. No-one talks about things like picking up medication for the first time. I walked out of the pharmacy with two massive bags full of medication, and you have to take so many different medications all at different times of the day, evenly spaced out. It’s so complicated and confusing. On top of the the fear, there’s total shock! It’s very overwhelming.
Sara Titchen’s dad took on the brave and emotional task of shaving his daughter’s hair – leaving the family in tears
With chemo, I expected the worst and so it wasn’t as bad as I imagined. I expected to be absolutely bed bound but my body didn’t react too horrendously, it was just that my immune system was wiped out. I was actually admitted to hospital a lot. Iwould get a little bug, and then they would have to treat me for neutropenic sepsis because things can escalate really quickly. It was when I was in isolation in hospital for a bug that I first noticed my hair falling out. I followed lots of cancer accounts on Instagram to get me aware and understand what it’s going to feel like but nothing can really prepare you. It was heartbreaking. It was completely out of my control. I was offered a cold cap – it can help some people hold onto their hair – but it’s painful and doesn’t work for everyone. It’s also for small doses of chemo, but I was having 16 rounds so there was no avoiding the hair loss. It was falling out on my pillow, when I brushed my hair, my hairline was receding and I just had to take back control – so I shaved it off. I had my boyfriend, my parents and my brother and I made them all chop off a chunk. Then my dad shaved the rest and it was so scary and sad. It’s just something I never thought I would do. Once I done it though, I kind of felt like I could do anything. It gave me a superpower back. It was a weight off my shoulders. When I still had hair I felt I could go out and hide that I was ill but when it’s gone, there’s no hiding. My first initial stepping stone was cutting my waist length hair to a bob which I donated this to The Little Princess Trust before shaving it all, so I knew from early on that once I had shaved my hair I would be getting a wig from them. They set me up with a salon in my area and we colour matched.
Whilst incredibly emotional, Sara Titchen admitted that shaving her hair gave her ‘superpowers’ and ‘control back’
The wig looked far better than my thinning hair anyway. My conception of wigs was what you see them in the films. The wind blows and the wig falls off – it’s very obvious. I’ve got to be honest, I looked in the NHS brochures and some of the wigs looked a bit dated because I guess a lot of them are veered for older people and older style. I’m 24 I still want to be trendy. I still want to look cool. I would have went a little longer with my wig but the charity are really struggling for donations which is why I came up with my idea to host a charity event in London, to give back and say a proper thank you. I’d say to anyone, please come along, hair is temporary and it will grow back – you have no idea the difference you’ll make to lives. I went from enjoying a relatively carefree lifestyle to one which was filled with hospital visits, injections and anxiety. Yet, the full realisation of being ill really hit home when I lost my hair. I felt vulnerable and alien and different to everyone around me. The Little Princess Trust helped me when I was at my most vulnerable – now I want to return the favour.” The Big Chop is a drop-in event taking place on Saturday 6 January from 12 pm – 5.00 pm at The Depot in Shoreditch. Entry tickets are £20 and include welcome drinks. Haircuts are not obligatory, though professional hairdressers will be on hand to cut hair throughout the day. All hair and proceeds will be given to The Little Princess Trust. Tickets now available at: https://fixr.co/event/the-big-chop-tickets-396875464 Story SavedYou can find this story in  My Bookmarks.Or by navigating to the user icon in the top right.Follow OK! MagazineFacebookTwitterCommentMore OnReal LifeHealth
