03 June 2024 , 23:00
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As Sarah Ferguson continues to recover from her dual cancer diagnoses last year, the Duchess of York has opened up about her recent health battles - including the poignant piece of advice that her mother-in-law, the late Queen Elizabeth had given her prior to her death. The 64 year old Duchess revealed she was diagnosed with breast cancer in June 2023 and underwent a mastectomy to have the disease removed. Yet in a further blow, while undergoing a breast reconstruction procedure just two months later, doctors found a suspicious skin lesion which was later identified as malignant melanoma.
However, despite the worrying diagnosis, the cancer in both cases was successfully removed, and while medics have advised the Duchess not to say she is “cancer-free” she is positive about her health and what it means for her future.
Opening up about her day to day life now, Sarah told Hello!: "I have to be checked regularly, and I have to put cream on my face to get out past sun damage, which means big blisters on my face, chest and hands for three weeks. But I'm not doing immunotherapy, taking any drugs or doing chemotherapy, for which I'm very grateful.”
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She then elaborated further on how her outlook on life had changed since her diagnosis as she added: "It gave me a swift kick in the butt and told me, 'Right, are you going to start living now, at 64, or are you going to keep on not quite living?' You don't have to be what everyone wants you to be: just be yourself.”
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In a new interview, Sarah revealed that the Queen had told her that 'being yourself is enough'
The Duchess of York revealed a 'positive' health update to fans as she opened up about her cancer diagnosis this weekIt was then that the Duchess recalled a piece of wisdom the Queen had once given her shortly before her death, as she continued: "One of the only people who saw me properly was the Queen and before she died, she said: 'Sarah, being yourself is enough.”
Although the Queen sadly passed away in September 2022, Sarah hasn’t been short of family support since her diagnosis, with her daughters Princess Beatrice and Princess Eugenie in particular having been hugely supportive of their mum amid her diagnosis.
A friend told PEOPLE that her "family is rallying ‘round”, before adding: ”They've been terrific since the summer."
In addition to her undergoing her own cancer battle, Sarah has also been a support herself to her brother-in-law King Charles and the Princess of Wales, who were both diagnosed with cancer earlier this year. Speaking at this year’s amfAR gala in Cannes, Fergie admitted: “"I think family unity is key…I think the key to life is that we all support each other.”
At the time, she also made a reference to “forgiveness” which many fans feel was a direct reference to the ongoing feud between the Royal family and Prince Harry, following the release of his controversial memoir Spare last year.