A DOWNEND hairdresser’s fight against cancer has inspired her daughters and colleagues to raise more than £2,500 for charity.
Mel Wiltshire has been unable to return to work at Style Collection, the salon she co-owns in Cleeve Wood Road, since she noticed her leg had swollen up in April last year.
What was first suspected to be a deep vein thrombosis (DVT) turned out to be leiomyosarcoma, a rare, aggressive form of cancer affecting smooth muscle tissue, most commonly found in the abdomen.
The cancer was only detected because it was pressing against Mel’s iliac vein, which carries blood from the legs to the heart, causing the swelling.
Mel said: “I’d worked all day on the salon floor, got home and when I changed my clothes, my leg was massive.
“The tumour was on a vein and was causing the symptoms of a DVT. They thought that’s what it was until they did a scan.”
After a series of tests the cancer was diagnosed in July last year and Mel underwent major abdominal surgery.
She said: “They said I was really lucky to have a symptom, because a lot of people don’t, and then it’s too late to treat.”
The surgery left Mel unable to stand for long or walk very far and she was told it would take between a year and 18 months to know what the long-term effects would be.
She said: “My life literally changed overnight – one day you’re fine, the next day you’re not.”
The cancer has a high rate of recurrence, so Mel will need to have a scan every six months.
Mel has been hairdressing for 39 years, since she was 15, and has co-owned Style Collection for the past 15.
She has been deluged with cards, gifts and well-wishes from clients, and her daughters and colleagues were inspired to channel the goodwill into a fundraising effort for charity.
On June 22 Mel’s daughters Jessie Wiltshire, Megan Levey and Connie Britton joined Steph Davis, Kayla O’Mahony and Lauren Lloyd from the salon to run the Race for Life Pretty Muddy 5k on the Downs, to raise money for charity Cancer Research UK.
So far they have raised more than £2,500 in donations, with almost £500 more in gift aid.
The Team Style Collection page on the Cancer Research UK fundraising website is still open for donations at tinyurl.com/yhcpunt5.
Mel said: “I was really touched that they went to the effort to do something positive and support such an amazing cause.”