I was stunned when I was diagnosed with cancer. Then I had to work out how to tell my son | Hilary Osborne

Like Kate, parents with the disease face a big decision - how and when to tell the children

Think about how shocked you felt after hearing the Princess of Wales's cancer news on Friday, multiply that by a thousand, and you go some way to knowing how it feels to get a diagnosis. Even if you've rehearsed hearing bad news while you wait for test results, you cannot be prepared for being told you have the disease.

When I got my breast cancer diagnosis in the summer of 2022 I was stunned. I hadn't imagined that I would be leaving the hospital and having to tell my family and friends that I was ill. I hadn't rehearsed those conversations in my head.