Three brave friends who defied breast cancer strip down to inspire others after surgery dailymail.co.uk - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from dailymail.co.uk Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
On the 10th anniversary of her mastectomy, and at the same age as her aunt was when she died, Eleanor said she believed the procedure saved her life.
Eleanor Howie, left, and sister Francesca both had preventative surgery after being told there was a very high risk they would get breast cancer.
- Credit: Supplied by Cancer Research UK
She said: Before Angelina Jolie talked publicly about her faulty BRCA1 gene, there was very little information on preventative surgery, especially for women who were in their early 20s like me and Francesca. Psychologically, preventative surgery was very difficult for me because I had a healthy body and yet I was subjecting myself to this very invasive surgery which would change my life and my relationship with my body forever.
By Press Association 2021
Caroline Scott, Eleanor Howie and Laura Middleton-Hughes, who have all had breast surgery, model underwear from Valiant Lingerie, founded by Ms Howie to help women regain their confidence after surgery. (Fuller Photography/ PA)
A woman who started a lingerie business for cancer survivors after she had a double mastectomy has posed for photographs in her underwear alongside two friends who also had major breast surgery.
Eleanor Howie, 33, of King’s Lynn, Norfolk, had surgery to remove her breast tissue, and reconstructive surgery, as a preventative measure aged just 24.
She had discovered that her mother and aunt were both diagnosed with breast cancer aged 31, then genetic testing revealed that she had a faulty gene which put her at high risk of getting breast cancer.