The Fashion for Life Show is on October 25 at the Villa.

The event takes place every two years and raises money for Isle of Man Breast Care and Breast Cancer Now. Julie Blackburn talks to two women involved with the show about their experience with breast cancer.

It’s a celebration of life, says Sharon Maddrell, chair of local charity, Isle of Man Breast Care.

We’re talking in the sun room at her home in The Hope, along with Sonia Callin who will once again be directing the show.

Five minutes later Dot Tilbury, the show’s compere, rolls up on her bicycle.

Dot and Sonia have both been involved since Sharon first had the idea to do the show in 2005. In the past two years both have also been diagnosed with breast cancer, the irony of which is not lost on either of them.

Sonia is laughing when she says: ’When I was diagnosed last year I rang Sharon and said: "You know all that money I’ve helped you raise? Can I have it back?!"

’I have now, directly as a patient, been a recipient of exactly what the charity is for.’

Sonia, who is 55, was diagnosed at the end of May last year and one of her first calls was to Sharon.

She says:’When I had the callback I kind of knew because I’d been having a couple of problems. Sharon’s jaw dropped when I told her.’

Sharon agrees: ’When Dot rang me, two years ago, and said she’d got the callback to go for a biopsy I was dumbstruck. And then the following year it was Sonia.’

Sonia had an operation here in the island followed by five months of chemotherapy and three weeks of radiotherapy.

She’s made a good recovery, and, after nearly nine months of treatment, she says she has just got her energy back.

She says: ’The operation was a doddle but then every bit of treatment afterwards floors you a bit, it just wipes you out.

’The way I would describe it is that normally when you’re busy doing things you just keep going and you’ve got some reserve energy that you draw on. Then all of a sudden you haven’t got that reserve energy. There is nothing in the bank.’

She lost her long (straight) blonde hair during chemotherapy but it has grown back in silvery curls which look wonderful: ’I think they make you look very artistic,’ is Dot’s verdict.

Whilst Sonia’s diagnosis came about following a routine screening, Dot’s, two years ago, was symptomatic.

Dot recalls: ’I found something strange on my nipple and I thought: "right - straight to the doctor". He thought it might be OK but wasn’t sure and he sent me straight to the hospital.’

Sharon went with her, not just as a friend but because this is exactly the sort of help and support offered by Isle of Man Breast Care.

She says: ’We’re there for anybody who hasn’t got anybody to go with them to a clinic appointment because you definitely need another pair of ears.’

Dot, MBE and national treasure, has a famously busy and active lifestyle. When she was given her treatment options: a lumpectomy; three weeks of radiotherapy, both with follow up treatment, or a mastectomy and no other treatment, it was always a pretty safe bet which one she would go for.

She told the consultant: ’I can’t be doing with three weeks away [for treatment], I haven’t got time. I’ll just have the mastectomy.’

Even she was slightly taken aback when he said: ’OK, can you come in next Thursday?’ She recalls: ’Within two weeks I’d been diagnosed and had my operation.’

She adds that she did consent to slow down and take care with her recovery: ’For once in my life I did everything I was told and I sort of enjoyed the rest really. I couldn’t just dash around everywhere.’

It was six weeks before she was allowed to drive and she built up her strength and fitness again walking along the railway line near her home.

She says: ’The first time it was only about a quarter of a mile and it was then I realised that I really had to take it easy. You think you can just get back straightaway but you can’t. I built it up very steadily, just doing a little walk each day.’

Less than two months later she was on stage again, compering the Fashion for Life show.

When Sharon, who had breast cancer herself 25 years ago, first thought of doing the show the idea was that all the models would also have had breast cancer.

This is still the case and Dot says: ’It was strange because now I am one of the girls too.’

Sonia agrees that it is a different experience, doing the show after having had breast cancer herself.

She says: ’Dot found it last time and I’m certainly finding it this time that, although you could empathise with the people before, now it’s a totally different ball game: you’re seeing it from the other side.’

She adds: ’I’ve spent the last 14 years being overcome by the whole experience.

’For a start, these ladies had had this treatment that I didn’t know anything about and my main objective was always to try and build their confidence more than anything.

’The whole idea of them going through that and then putting it back out there to raise the money and raise awareness was humbling.

’Now I’m humbled by the people who support it as much as anything as well.

’I’m humbled by everybody.’