Woman with Kildare links who is fighting cancer brings wedding forward

A newly-wed Irish woman living in the UK is fighting stage four terminal cancer and has appealed for urgent help that may save her life and let her grow old with her new husband.

Joanne Ryan, who lives in Swindon, tied the knot with her long-term partner, Andy, last month, just days after discovering she is suffering from incurable breast cancer.

Joanne, whose parents, Tommy and Breda, hailed from Co Galway and Co Kildare respectively, is battling the disease for a third time and can no longer receive treatment on the NHS.

She therefore decided to bring her wedding forward and, with the help of family and friends, managed to organise a perfect occasion at very short notice, The Irish World newspaper reports.

“I said to Andy, we were supposed to have a happy ending and we deserve a happy ending. I told him we were getting married that weekend. He was as up for it as I was,” said Joanne. “It was incredibly emotional, and it was the best day of my life. When [photographer] Steffen was snapping away, I felt like a movie star. And everyone should get the chance to feel that way.

“It was the perfect day, the best day of my life. I felt like a little star and when you’re going through cancer treatment that is so important.

“We made a lot of very happy memories; the wedding video is about making memories, which will be crucial especially for Andy when I am gone.”

However, three years later, the cancer returned. She required a radical mastectomy but couldn’t believe that she had beaten it for a second time. Six weeks after her latest operation, a scan revealed that the cancer had spread to her lung and she was told that she was now at stage four.

She credits her optimistic, positive nature as being able to get through the darker times, something she inherited from her parents. She recalled how her mother would regularly tell her “open your eyes each morning, smile, love and go on”.

This is something she has continued to do throughout her life and she is adopting the attitude once more in a bid to raise more awareness of breast cancer.

She is also looking to hopefully collect funds for potentially life-saving gamma knife treatment for herself and others facing stage four.

This private treatment costs £18,000 and she has set-up a Just Giving page to help with the fundraising process.

Joanne’s final goal is to “grow old disgracefully” with Andy, but she is incredibly happy that she got to share such a special day with the man who has stood by her throughout her treatments.

• For more information about her story, visit www.justgiving.com/crowdfunding/joanne-ryan