Connect with us

NewsBeat

Half of holidaymakers have changed travel plans due to costs

Published

on

Half of holidaymakers have changed travel plans due to costs

A poll of 2,000 adults who go on holiday found 22 per cent are arranging their getaways closer to departure and 32 per cent would rather stay somewhere closer to the UK.

Almost seven in 10 (67 per cent) are eager to avoid the strain of busy airports while 16 per cent have delayed getaways due to worldwide instability.

And 54 per cent have already committed to a staycation over the warmer months this year – having booked their UK getaway.

Advertisement

Further to this, more travellers will be heading to the South West of England this summer than making the traditional jaunt to Spain.

Ryan Johnson, senior vice president at Enterprise Mobility in the UK and Ireland, which commissioned the research, said: “This summer’s travel trends paint a clear picture of how UK holidaymakers are approaching their summer holidays, with domestic travel, and road trips in particular, firmly at the forefront.

“Cost, convenience and a desire for more flexibility are all shaping those decisions in meaningful ways.”

It also emerged cost was another key factor in the emergence of ‘stay-trippers’, people swapping overseas holidays for road trips and short breaks across the UK.

Advertisement

More than a third (37 per cent) would choose a domestic road trip over travelling overseas on price, according to the OnePoll.com data.

A third (35 per cent) also saw easier planning as a benefit of staying closer to home, while 33 per cent cited the added bonus of being able to be more flexible with their plans.

For those planning a road trip specifically, the Scottish Highlands (42 per cent), Lake District (40 per cent) and Cornwall (37 per cent) ranked as the most sought-after stops.

When it comes to driving specifically, reliability was the top priority when selecting a car up to the task (46 per cent), ahead of comfort and passenger space (39 per cent) and fuel efficiency (33 per cent).

Advertisement

Traffic, meanwhile, was the most cited concern for those taking to the road this summer (54 per cent).

Ryan Johnson from Enterprise Mobility added: “We see the results reflected in the way our customers choose their travel.

“Having the right vehicle in the right place at the right time is fundamental, and customers need a vehicle that is reliable, comfortable and well suited to the journey ahead, qualities that are essential to creating a great road trip experience.”

Advertisement

Source link

Continue Reading
Click to comment

You must be logged in to post a comment Login

Leave a Reply

NewsBeat

Octopus Energy tells customers to avoid using electricity during the eclipse as solar power generation plummets

Published

on

Spectators at Edinburgh's Royal Observatory view the last total solar eclipse in August 1999

The UK’s biggest energy supplier is encouraging Brits to use less electricity during the solar eclipse tomorrow, because solar power generation will plummet.

Octopus Energy urged its eight million customers to delay using their washing machines, ovens, dishwashers and other plug-in devices between 6pm and 8pm.

Tomorrow’s hotly-anticipated eclipse will see solar generation plunge at a crucial time of day when electricity demand rises as millions of people come home from work.

Octopus told customers that the eclipse will ‘briefly knock out a chunk of Britain’s solar power’ and possibly require more fossil fuel power generation.

Advertisement

Spain, a country which gets more than half of its electricity from wind and solar, was plunged into blackouts in April 2025. Critics initially blamed a sudden plunge in solar power generation, but experts later put it down to so-called ‘voltage control issues’.

The National Energy System Operator, which runs the UK grid, said the eclipse could cut supply by up to 1.3 gigawatts tomorrow – enough to power about 500,000 homes.

Extra gas power stations may therefore have to be fired up, but Octopus said this need will be reduced if enough households delay using electricity for a short time.

The London-based company is therefore asking people to use less energy to avoid putting extra pressure on the grid at that point and increasing carbon emissions.

Advertisement

As an incentive, Octopus said those who use less electricity than usual during the two-hour window would get one hour of free daytime electricity this Sunday.

Bosses said solar power generated a record 14.4 per cent of Britain’s electricity last month, meaning two hours without sunshine will ‘leave a gap that has to be filled’.

The moon will obscure more than 90 per cent of the sun between 6.17pm and 8.06pm tomorrow, the most it has been blocked above the UK since the 1999 total eclipse. 

Advertisement

Spectators at Edinburgh’s Royal Observatory view the last total solar eclipse in August 1999

Advertisement

Octopus said it will monitor usage during the ‘Eclipse Session’ from customers’ smart meters tomorrow, and will then email successful participants on Saturday with the exact time – which will be at some point ‘in the late-morning, early-afternoon’.

Its chief customer officer Rebecca Dibb-Simkin said: ‘Many of us will be looking up at the sky on Wednesday evening to experience this once-in-a-generation event. But as the sun disappears, so will some of Britain’s solar generation, just as demand peaks.

‘By shifting everyday tasks like the washing machine or dishwasher until later, households can help reduce the need for gas power stations – and earn rewards for doing their bit.’

The company added that solar power generated a record 14.4 per cent of Britain’s electricity last month, meaning a ‘couple of hours without sunshine can leave a gap that has to be filled’.

Advertisement

Customers can also enter an Octopus photo competition showing what they did during the eclipse instead of being inside at home, with the chance to win free solar panels and installation or £12,000 in cash instead.

Neso said it has been planning for the solar eclipse for more than a year, ‘helping keep the electricity system balanced while the nation looks to the skies’.

Meanwhile the Met Office revealed Devon, Cornwall and the westernmost parts of Pembrokeshire in Wales are set to see the eclipse at its fullest, with a range of 94 per cent to 96 per cent of the sun obscured by the moon.

Plymouth in particular is forecast to see the moon cover 94.66 per cent of the sun at 7.16pm.

Advertisement

The rest of Wales, Northern Ireland, parts of the West Midlands and the South West, and the westernmost parts of Scotland can expect to see 92 per cent to 94 per cent solar coverage.

The Daily Mail's front page on August 12, 1999 following the last total solar eclipse

The Daily Mail’s front page on August 12, 1999 following the last total solar eclipse 

Another total solar eclipse visible from the UK in 1927 – pictured in Stoneyhurst, Lancashire

In Cardiff, the moon is forecast to obscure 93.24 per cent of the sun at 7.13pm while in Belfast it will cover 93.09 per cent of the sun at 7.08pm.

Advertisement

Skygazers in the rest of the UK will likely see the moon obscure 90 per cent to 92 per cent of the sun – with 91.79 per cent expected in Birmingham at 7.12pm, 91.41 per cent in London at 7.13pm, 90.74 per cent in Inverness at 7.03pm, 90.71 per cent in Edinburgh at 7.06pm and 90.22 per cent in Newcastle at 7.07pm.

Those most keen to catch a sight of the fullest possible solar eclipse should avoid the easternmost parts of the UK, where only 88 per cent to 90 per cent of solar coverage is expected.

These include the coasts of Norfolk, Yorkshire and Aberdeenshire, as well as the Orkney and Shetland Islands.

When will the eclipse be visible in the UK?

When to see the solar eclipse  
Location Eclipse starts  Maximum eclipse  Eclipse ends  
Edinburgh 18:08 19:05 20:00 
Glasgow 18:08 19:05  20:06 
Dublin  18:12  19:10  20:04 
Manchester  18:13  19:10 20:04 
Liverpool  18:13 19:10  20:04 
Birmingham  18:15 19:11  20:04 
Bristol  18:17 19:12  20:06 
London   18:17 19:12  20:06 
Cardiff  18:17 19:12  20:06 
Truro  18:18 19:16  20:10 

 

Advertisement

<!- – ad: https://mads.dailymail.co.uk/v8/de/news/none/article/other/mpu_factbox.html?id=mpu_factbox_1 – ->

Eye doctors urged people to avoid looking directly at the sun, with even brief exposure causing lasting vision damage.

Experts have warned that only special solar eclipse glasses that are ISO 12312-2 certified for the safest eye protection should be used to view the eclipse. But they have all but sold out online, or carry hefty delivery fees to arrive in time.

Advertisement

The Royal Greenwich Observatory told the public that regular sunglasses are not a safe enough method to view the cosmic phenomenon.

So-called eclipse glasses that do not carry the safety standards, or ordinary sunglasses, no matter how dark, should never be worn to view an eclipse, as they reduce glare, making it feel more comfortable to look at the sun for longer, but still allow harmful solar radiation to reach the retina.

Following the 1999 eclipse, the Royal College of Ophthalmologists reported around 70 cases of people experiencing vision problems after watching the eclipse. Around 40 per cent had looked at it for less than a minute.

The next time the moon obscures as much of the sun will be in 2081 and the next total solar eclipse in the UK will be in 2090.

Advertisement

Reykjavik in Iceland and Spanish cities A Coruna, Oviedo, Zaragoza, Bilbao and Valencia will see a total eclipse tomorrow, in which the moon fully obscures the sun.

In an added bonus for stargazers, the annual Perseid meteor shower reaches its peak tomorrow night. The shower is produced as Earth ploughs through a stream of dust left behind by Comet Swift–Tuttle.

Each tiny grain strikes Earth’s atmosphere at about 60km per second (37 miles per second), burning up in a brief flash that takes the appearance of a shooting star.

Source link

Advertisement
Continue Reading

NewsBeat

Molly-Mae Hague vows ‘this will be my last child’ and says she’s in ‘absolute survival mode’ as she details son Midas’ heartbreaking feeding issues

Published

on

Molly-Mae Hague has vowed her son Midas, 10 weeks, will 'be her last'

Molly-Mae Hague has vowed her son Midas, 10 weeks, will ‘be her last’. 

The influencer, 27, is already mother to daughter Bambi, three, with partner Tommy Fury – however, in her latest YouTube vlog, she insisted she will stop at two children due to the fact she is ‘in survival mode’ with a toddler and newborn. 

In the video, which was released on Monday, she revealed that Midas is struggling with feeding issues, leaving him ‘screaming’ in intense pain. 

Speaking on camera to her 2.09 million YouTube subscribers, she said: ‘I just, to be honest, I just feel so bad for mine just because this reflux thing is actually becoming like a massive issue for me – I’ve never, ever heard a baby scream like that.’

Advertisement

Reflux occurs when stomach contents flow back up into the food pipe, causing a baby to spit up milk during or shortly after a feed. 

Molly-Mae Hague has vowed her son Midas, 10 weeks, will ‘be her last’

In the video, which was released on Monday, she revealed that Midas is struggling with feeding issues, leaving him 'screaming' in intense pain

In the video, which was released on Monday, she revealed that Midas is struggling with feeding issues, leaving him ‘screaming’ in intense pain

Advertisement

Molly-Mae has been candid about her struggles with motherhood, frequently shedding light on Bambi’s behaviour. 

Since welcoming Midas in early June, she admits her baby days will be over as she is juggling her relationship while parenting a toddler and newborn. 

She said: ‘Like, peace and love and prosperity and all of that, but it’s just a lot, like, obviously, and I’m, like, I feel like I’m showing a lot of, like, oh, you know, I’m coping, I’m good, but also…

‘I’m having moments where I’m thinking 100 per cent, like, I’m so blessed and so lucky, but this will be my last child.’

Advertisement

Molly-Mae went on: ‘One for the books is to remember like that having a 10-week-old and a three-and-a-half-year-old, like is something that a lot of mums are doing and they have more children. I am so aware of that, but it is a little bit savage…

‘Obviously, it would be so not realistic of me to not talk about the highs and the lows, and yeah, I need you guys to understand that.’

On her battles to feed Midas, she lamented his struggles with reflux. 

She said: ‘I’ve never, ever heard a baby scream like that. And it like literally makes me want to cry. Like he’s crying, I want to cry…

Advertisement
The influencer, 27, is already mother to daughter Bambi, three, with partner Tommy Fury – however, in her latest YouTube vlog, she insisted she will stop at two children due to the fact she is 'in survival mode' with a toddler and newborn

The influencer, 27, is already mother to daughter Bambi, three, with partner Tommy Fury – however, in her latest YouTube vlog, she insisted she will stop at two children due to the fact she is ‘in survival mode’ with a toddler and newborn

She discussed the situation in the video

She discussed the situation in the video 

‘And it’s so just a lot like having a baby when it’s hard enough as it is, and then add like feeding digestive issues on top of that. And it’s just, it is a lot, but anyway.’

She admitted that the attempts at balancing the two kids meant she and Tommy are forced to spend their time apart until bed time.

Advertisement

She said: ‘I’m trying to get him in a routine, I’m trying to do the best thing for him, but equally, like, that’s not the best thing for Bambi…

‘[But] that means that we’re all tied to the house, unless we literally just do separate things with the kids, which is what we’re doing…

‘This is what I mean about just like, separate, being separate all the time, doing separate things with the kids, because it’s just, it’s not fair, I’m trying to get him in a routine, and this is where I’m like so torn.’ 

Source link

Advertisement
Continue Reading

NewsBeat

Three sports groups using movement to tackle isolation

Published

on

Three sports groups using movement to tackle isolation
3. GoodGym

GoodGym turns exercise into practical community action. Its members run, walk or cycle to help local projects and isolated older people, whether that means clearing a garden, sorting donations at a food bank or helping someone with a task they can no longer manage alone.

“GoodGym was founded on a simple idea that we could use being active to help people and strengthen communities, Ed Field, head of operations, said. “What we’ve seen is that the benefits go both ways and that the people participating feel healthier, more connected and more purposeful through helping others.”

Each session combines movement with usefulness, giving people a reason to get active and to keep showing up, while turning exercise into something that reaches beyond the person doing it.

Advertisement

Image: Laura Lewis
Main image: Ella Richardson

Source link

Advertisement
Continue Reading

NewsBeat

Firefighters to remain on scene of nature reserve fire for ‘days to come’

Published

on

Cambridgeshire Live

This is the second fire at the nature reserve within two weeks

Firefighters are expected to remain at the scene of a nature reserve fire for “days to come”. Cambridgeshire Fire and Rescue were called to a fire at the Holme Fen Nature Reserve on Saturday (August 8) at around 10.24am.

Advertisement

Firefighters have been continuing to tackle the fire over the last few days. Crews remain at the scene today (Tuesday, August 11).

A fire spokesperson said: “Firefighters have been at the scene overnight continuing to tackle the fire. Crews will remain on the scene throughout the day, and for days to come.”

This is the second fire within two weeks that firefighters have dealt with at Holme Fen. The cause of the first fire was deliberate.

Advertisement

The cause of the second fire hasn’t yet been determined.

Do you want more of the latest Cambridgeshire news as it comes in from across the county? Sign up to our dedicated newsletter to make sure you never miss a big story from Cambridge or anywhere else in the county. You can also sign up to our dedicated Traffic and Crime newsletters for the latest updates on the topics you are most interested in.

Source link

Advertisement
Continue Reading

NewsBeat

Trump hidden in catering truck in secret plane swap over Iran threat, reports say

Published

on

A catering truck parked alongside the old Air Force One jet prior to departure from Ankara

Donald Trump secretly swapped planes as he left a Nato summit in Turkey last month in response to a possible Iranian threat, US media report.

The US president boarded Air Force One in view of television cameras before being smuggled onto an elevated airport catering truck and transported to a military aircraft, without journalists and some White House staff on board knowing, the Washington Post said.

Officials told the BBC’s US partner CBS News that the US had detected a credible Iranian threat to fire a missile at the plane. The White House has not confirmed the secret switch.

Trump had earlier said he was Iran’s “number one target” during the summit in Ankara.

Advertisement

The clandestine manoeuvre came a day after the US renewed military strikes on Iran following a breakdown of negotiations between Washington and Tehran to end the war.

Trump had arrived in Turkey aboard a newer Boeing 747-8 donated by Qatar, but announced that he would leave on the old Air Force One “for old time’s sake”.

On 8 July, footage showed him boarding the presidential jet at Ankara airport. But according to the Washington Post, he was then secretly taken to a smaller C-32A military aircraft – a modified Boeing 757 often used by the vice president – via a catering truck which had been elevated to plane level on the opposite side to where he had boarded.

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth boarded the C-32A separately using external stairs in an effort to make the flight appear normal, according to the newspaper.

Advertisement

Journalists and some White House staff boarded Air Force One and were reportedly told to close their window shades. They were unaware the president was no longer on board.

Trump then flew to the UK en route to the US, where he reboarded the old Air Force One and was seen descending from the aircraft after it landed at RAF Mildenhall. It is unclear how he moved from the C-32A back to the legacy jet.

Source link

Advertisement
Continue Reading

NewsBeat

Young man and woman killed in Gorton crash named for first time as suspect to appear in court

Published

on

Manchester Evening News

The man and woman were killed in the smash on Hyde Road

A young man and woman who died in a crash on a main road in Gorton have been named for the first time as Jack Cartwright and Natasha Denman.

Advertisement

The pair lost their lives in the crash on the A57 Hyde Road on August 5. Emergency services were called to the road, near the junction with Clumber Road, after a car hit a stationary digger at around 9.35pm.

Four people were inside the car at the time, a Greater Manchester Police spokesperson said previously. A young man and a woman, aged 23 and 24, sadly died at the scene.

Click here to get the biggest stories straight to your inbox in our Daily Newsletter

The man has now been named on official court documents as Mr Cartwright, while the woman has been named as Ms Denshaw. The car involved the crash has been identified in the court documents as being a Skoda Fabia.

Advertisement

Apollo Simms, 26, of Tealby Road, Manchester, has been charged with two counts of death by dangerous driving and failing to provide a sample for analysis. He is due to appear at Manchester Magistrates’ Court today (August 11).

Another man who was arrested has been released on bail, police confirmed.

Source link

Advertisement
Continue Reading

NewsBeat

Andy Burnham government hit with major backlash after announcing student loan changes

Published

on

Manchester Evening News

The Government has announced major changes for those paying off student loans

The Prime Minister should consider scrapping student debt or making interest payments interest free to encourage more people into higher education, M.E.N readers have said.

Advertisement

Yesterday, the Government announced major changes to interest rates and repayment thresholds for anyone with a student loan.

The Department of Education published its new interest rates for undergraduate and postgraduate loans; the new repayment thresholds for Plan 1 loans; and the interest rates and deferment threshold for Mortgage Style Student Loans.

Click here to get the biggest stories straight to your inbox in our Daily Newsletter

The new interest rates are set to affect the RPI rates for student loans – the base inflation measure. The government uses the RPI figure from March each year to set the baseline for student loan interest rates starting in September.

Advertisement

Depending on which plan you are on, you will be charged RPI plus up to an extra 3%. In the update issued yesterday, it has been confirmed that RPI rates are 4.1% for anyone paying back their loan from September 1. The repayment threshold for Plan 1 loans has also been affected.

You can see a full breakdown of changes to the student loan repayment plans here.

‘This is so wrong’

Following the announcement, M.E.N. readers expressed their views on the current student loan system on our Facebook page.

Ellen Vdk said: “Make it 0% and then the government has more chance of getting the full amount back.”

Advertisement

Su Bo expressed a similar view, adding: “Make it interest free or very very low interest. Those are the only sensible options. We want to encourage people to continue to go into higher education not put them off.”

Michelle Lindsay commented: “This is so wrong… why are we not trying to help students and our young people, on one hand we talk about NEET getting out of control and then on the other hand we’re putting up the interest rates for student loans, honestly the mind baffles!

“No wonder we have a shortage of teachers / nurses / doctors etc. because people can’t afford to pay the fees, living expenses etc etc.”

Tasha Hodrien shared her own story of the student loan system, saying: “When I left uni in 2018 my student loans totalled about £40k, I am a low earner so my repayments are low or £0 each month. With the interest adding in the last 8yrs mean my student loan is now almost £75k. I’m 50 and will probably never clear this debt.”

Advertisement

Natasha Burr also shared her personal story on experiencing student debt, saying: “I started paying my SL [student loan] back in 2016, it sat at 25K. I had only a small amount of time where I wasn’t paying anything back, I’m now down to 22K. Nearly 10 years paying it back, most months I pay back £200 something but interest is £100.”

Fiona Stewart compared the lower rates of student debt in Scotland compared to England. Eligible Scottish students receive free tuition funded by the government, while English students face tuition fees up to £9,790 per year.

Fiona said: “If Scotland can offer tuition fees for free why can’t the rest of the UK? Our domestic students are our next generation of innovators, health care professionals, SME’s, scientists.”

Irene Counsell expressed frustration at the different changes to the repayments on the various student loan plans.

Advertisement

Irene said: “Why is it so complicated? Just set a low fixed rate from the outset, or better still interest free.”

While Hannah Sofia Hulme said simply: “He [Andy Burnham] should be scrapping student debt.”

Source link

Advertisement
Continue Reading

NewsBeat

UK weather: Next heatwave begins with amber heat health alerts in place

Published

on

Person walking across a very dry and brown park with a towel over their head, providing shelter from the hot weather

The hot weather will intensify and be more widespread on Wednesday.

In an area from South Yorkshire to east Wales, Somerset and east across England temperatures will be in excess of 30C.

Some of the warmth will spread further north into northern England, Scotland and Northern Ireland with temperatures into the low to mid-20s.

The hottest weather will be around the Midlands and south-east England with 31 to 33C.

Advertisement

By Thursday and Friday, extreme heat is most likely in parts of the Midlands, eastern and south-east England where temperatures could be as high as 35 or 36C.

As heat builds throughout the week, overnight temperatures will stay relatively high bringing some uncomfortable nights for sleeping.

Minimum temperatures may not go lower than 16 to 18C across England and Wales.

There is also a possibility of a “tropical night” – where temperatures remain above 20C all night – in south-east England.

Advertisement

While the heat will not be quite as intense or feel as humid as the heatwaves in June and July, the BBC understands the Met Office may be considering issuing extreme heat warnings.

That would suggest that, as well as health impacts, there could be some concerns about infrastructure such as the transport network and power lines.

The highest temperatures in June and July were 38C and 35.5C respectively.

For the first time in recorded history we are expecting a temperature higher than 35C to have been recorded in the UK for four consecutive months – underlining that this has been a year like no other.

Advertisement

Source link

Continue Reading

NewsBeat

How to make a pinhole projector to view the solar eclipse

Published

on

How to make a pinhole projector to view the solar eclipse

Taking place on Wednesday (August 12) the eclipse will be the most coverage seen in the UK since 1999, when most of Cornwall and Devon experienced total coverage.

With most eclipse glasses sold out across the country, a pinhole projector offers a simple, homemade alternative to safely view the event.

Here is how to make one at home so you can still enjoy this week’s eclipse.

A partial solar eclipse as seen from the UKA partial solar eclipse will be visible in the UK this week (Image: Getty Images/iStockphoto)

How to make a pinhole projector for the solar eclipse

A pinhole projector, which can be assembled using everyday materials, allows people to observe the eclipse indirectly by projecting an image of the Sun onto a surface, making it safe for the eyes.

Advertisement

The method works best for partial eclipses, where the Sun takes on a crescent shape as the Moon moves across it.

To make a basic pinhole projector, all you need is two pieces of white card.

Poke a small hole in one piece and hold it above the other, with your back to the Sun.

The sunlight passing through the hole will project a small image of the Sun onto the second card.

Advertisement

During the eclipse, the shadow of the Moon will be visible within this tiny, projected disc.

A colander or even the gaps between tree leaves can serve the same purpose, casting multiple crescent shapes onto the ground.

For those looking for a slightly more involved project, a box pinhole projector can also be constructed for a steadier view.

Advertisement

Where to buy solar eclipse glasses in the UK

You can buy certified solar eclipse glasses in the UK from reputable astronomy retailers, specialised online distributors, or general online marketplaces such as Amazon UK.

However, many retailers are seeing shortages in stock as people across the country rush to secure them ahead of the event on Wednesday evening.

People have been warned not to look at the eclipse without glasses, as they block out the Sun’s harmful rays.

Regular sunglasses are not safe to use, as they don’t have adequate UV protection to protect your eyesight.

Advertisement

Adequate glasses should have safety certification ‘ISO 12312-2′ or ‘ISO 12312-2:2015’ printed somewhere on them.

There are other ways of viewing it, such as a solar telescope or watching official live streams, one of which is being run by the Royal Museums Greenwich (RMG).

What time will the solar eclipse be in the UK?

What time the solar eclipse will peak will depend on where you are in the UK, but it will be somewhere between 7.02pm and 7.16pm.

Here are the estimated eclipse times for areas across the UK, according to the RMG:

  • Edinburgh and Glasgow – begin at 6.08pm, peak at 7.05pm, end at 8pm
  • Manchester and Liverpool – begin at 6.13pm, peak at 7.10pm,  end at 8.03-04pm
  • Norwich and Birmingham – begin at 6.15pm, peak at 7.11pm, end at 8.04pm 
  • London, Bristol and Cardiff – begin at 6.17pm, peak at 7.12pm, end at 8.06pm
  • Truro, Cornwall – begin at 6.18pm, peak at 7.16pm, end at 8.10pm

Recommended reading:


At its peak, enough of the Sun will be covered to make a noticeable difference in the temperature and light levels.

Advertisement

However, unlike with a total eclipse, the sky will not become dark – it will feel more like a cloudy day or close to dusk or dawn.

Will you be watching the solar eclipse this week? Let us know in the comments.

Source link

Advertisement
Continue Reading

NewsBeat

Inside the mysterious rise of ‘milk duct’ cancer in women in their 40s… and the alarming link to IVF, alcohol and the Pill

Published

on

Sarah Stirk learned she had abnormal cells after a breast screening, and was later diagnosed with an early-stage breast cancer in the milk ducts

Just one hour after a mammogram that changed her life, Sarah Stirk arrived for her TV presenting job at Sky Sports and fought to put on a brave face.

The breast screening had revealed abnormal cells in her milk ducts, the tiny tubes that carry milk to the nipple, and while not always cancerous, Sarah had a gut feeling something wasn’t right.

‘I saw the doctor’s face and could tell straight away it wasn’t good news,’ recalls Sarah, 47, a golf presenter and mother of one from York.

‘I asked if there was a lump and she said: “no, but there are abnormal cells…”. Afterwards, I went straight to work. I was a bit of a mess. I didn’t know for sure but no part of me expected good news.’

Advertisement

And she was right. Sarah was later diagnosed with ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS) in her left breast, an early-stage breast cancer within the milk ducts.

Sometimes known as a ‘stage zero’ cancer (as it hasn’t spread), DCIS is on the rise, particularly among women in their 40s. Until recently, it was usually only seen in women over 50.

Aged 47, three years before the NHS invites women for routine screening, Sarah only went for the mammogram as the private specialist she’d seen for perimenopause symptoms including hot flushes advised her to have the scan before starting HRT.

Advertisement

Sarah Stirk learned she had abnormal cells after a breast screening, and was later diagnosed with an early-stage breast cancer in the milk ducts

‘I had a feeling something wasn’t right so wanted to go for the appointment,’ says Sarah. ‘I’ve always had a fear of breast cancer. The fear was maybe irrational as size has nothing to do with cancer risk, but my breasts are quite large.’

The radiographers spotted a large area of calcifications, small white calcium deposits that sometimes indicate cancer – calcium deposits can occur with age but they can also form as a result of breast cells being replaced faster than usual, which can indicate pre-cancerous changes.

Sarah was referred to the NHS for a further mammogram and biopsy, which was carried out last December.

Advertisement

This time doctors said it was ‘50/50’ as to whether it was cancer. Two weeks later – just days before Christmas – Sarah had her hair cut and was standing outside the hairdresser’s when a consultant phoned and delivered the bad news.

She recalls: ‘I can’t remember exactly what was said but I remember hearing the word mastectomy. I was devastated.

‘My worst fears were realised. I was in tears and had to walk back through town to my car, crying. I knew I had a gruelling journey ahead of me.’

Professor James Harvey, a consultant oncoplastic breast surgeon at the private The Alexandra Hospital in Manchester, says DCIS is only picked up during screening as typically it’s symptomless.

Advertisement

‘The breast is full of milk ducts and inside each of those ducts is a lining of cells,’ he says.

‘DCIS is a cancerous overgrowth of those cells. They haven’t yet developed the ability to grow or spread. But if you leave them long enough, one of them will turn into invasive cancer, bursting out of the duct. It might create a lump and spread.’

A lumpectomy or radiotherapy are usually first-line treatments. But a mastectomy may be required if a large area is affected.

It is increasingly common – ‘we are seeing more younger women with DCIS, particularly in the last two or three years,’ explains Professor Harvey, who also works at the NHS Nightingale and Prevent Breast Cancer Centre in Manchester. The number of diagnoses has tripled in the UK since the early 1990s. Rates have increased by 29 per cent since 2019.

Advertisement
There is strong evidence in favour of doing mammography screening younger, Sarah says. She has signed a petition to lower the screening age to 40

There is strong evidence in favour of doing mammography screening younger, Sarah says. She has signed a petition to lower the screening age to 40

‘Research groups are being set up internationally to try to get to the bottom of why this is happening,’ says Professor Harvey.

‘It’s likely to be a combination of factors. Something to do with how our lifestyles have changed. No one knows for sure.’

Possible factors include women having children later as this changes exposure to oestrogen and other hormones, use of the contraceptive pill, alcohol and sedentary lifestyles.

Advertisement

Obesity is another factor, likely due to how it encourages inflammation in the body.

Sarah had IVF to have her son Milo, now four, and she believes the hormones she was given as part of the treatment might have had an impact.

Most studies suggest fertility drugs do not increase the risk of cancer, but evidence is limited and experts believe more research is needed.

Whatever the cause, Sarah’s cancer might have spread if she’d waited until 50 for a mammogram on the NHS.

Advertisement

‘I think there is good evidence that there is benefit of doing mammography screening younger, certainly from the age of 45,’ Professor Harvey explains.

‘It comes down to the resources available and whether we can afford that as a society.’

Sarah needed a mastectomy to remove all her cancer and choosing the right surgeon caused her ‘emotional turmoil’.

Sarah had IVF to have her son, Milo, and believes the hormones she was given as part of that treatment might have had an impact

Sarah had IVF to have her son, Milo, and believes the hormones she was given as part of that treatment might have had an impact

Advertisement

‘I’ve always had body confidence and liked my boobs,’ she says. ‘The decision I made was going to affect what I looked like for the rest of my life and it was very overwhelming.’

Using her private health insurance, she chose to have a mastectomy with a synthetic implant with Professor Harvey at The Alexandra Hospital. The procedure included a mastopexy, a breast lift and skin tightening on the right side to help her breasts look symmetrical.

‘On the day, I had a bit of a cold,’ recalls Sarah.

‘I was half hoping they’d say I was too unwell and to come back another day. The anxiety was horrific. I was worried that losing a breast would make me less of a woman somehow, less feminine.

Advertisement

‘I vividly remember walking to the anaesthetic table. I nearly said “I can’t do this”.

‘It was fear. I didn’t feel unwell and yet I was going into surgery and I knew I’d come out with a different body and have weeks of recovery ahead of me.’

Sarah’s four-hour surgery was a success and though she says ‘it was three months before I was able to look at myself in the mirror’, six months later she remains ‘sore and tired’ – but she is ‘delighted’ with the results. She has gone from a 35F to a 34DD.

‘After breastfeeding, my breasts had become heavy and saggy and were too big for my frame,’ she says. ‘But I didn’t want small boobs. Appearance matters to me, especially with the job I do.’

Advertisement

Sarah attends six-monthly scans and takes tamoxifen to cut the risk of her cancer returning.

She is now on a mission to raise awareness of DCIS and has signed a petition, organised by a chemotherapy nurse, to lower the screening age to 40. The petition, now closed, gathered more than 106,000 signatures.

‘DCIS is a silent killer,’ says Sarah. ‘The only way you catch this is with screening. If I’d waited until I was 50, my cancer might have been stage three or four. It might have been too late.’

She adds: ‘All the nurses told me they are seeing more younger women with DCIS. Lowering the screening age would save lives.’ Professor Harvey says if the screening age was lowered, the majority of women diagnosed would be offered radiotherapy and a lumpectomy and could keep their breasts.

Advertisement

This wasn’t an option for Sarah as the abnormal cells had spread to a larger area.

Some experts argue that as younger women have denser breast tissue, which can make mammograms less accurate, reducing the screening age may lead to overdiagnosis and unnecessary treatment.

Caught at its earliest stage, the cure rate for non-invasive DCIS is 99 per cent.

Jennifer Rusby, a consultant oncoplastic breast surgeon at The Royal Marsden NHS Foundation Trust in London, says if more women attended screenings when invited it would help catch breast cancer at this early stage and save more lives.

Advertisement

‘Breast screening is offered every three years to all women between the ages of 50 and 70. But, currently, only 60 to 70 per cent of women attend screening appointments when invited.’

The AgeX trial, run by the University of Oxford, has been looking at whether breast cancer outcomes could be improved if the screening age was lowered to 47 and raised to 73. Initial results are expected in December.

Treatment would be much less radical and invasive if caught early, says Ms Rusby.

Sarah returned to work in April: ‘I love my job and it’s great to get back to work and keeping busy,’ she says. ‘The team at Sky are like a little family and they have all been incredibly supportive.

Advertisement

‘But the diagnosis has changed me. I really embrace the small things in life and I’m incredibly grateful for everything I have and for catching it early.’

Source link

Continue Reading

Trending

Copyright © 2025