Beloved doctor and author reveals cancer diagnosis: 'I don't usually share personal things'

British psychologist and author Dr Julie Smith has revealed she has been diagnosed with breast cancer.

The beloved doctor, who became popular on social media, told her millions of Instagram followers she found a lump and briefly considered delaying seeing a doctor.

"So, I don't usually share personal things on here but sometime ago I found a lump in my breast," she explained. Dr Julie admitted her first thought was "I don't have time for this."

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"I was six weeks away from handing in my new book and I considered for a moment waiting until I was finished before calling the doctor," she said.

A few weeks later after having some tests and about a week before handing in her book she was told she has "early stage breast cancer".

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Dr Julie said the reason she is sharing this with her followers is because she read that one-in-five cancer patients wait "more than three months before seeing a doctor about their symptoms" and she can't stop thinking about how many other people will be in the same position that she was.

She shared more about her diagnosis in the post, writing: "Posting this feels incredibly vulnerable as I tend not to share many personal things online before reiterating the information she shared in the video.

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Dr Julie added: "Since the diagnosis, I am so grateful that I didn't delay for long.

"Speed is our secret weapon when it comes to cancer. The sooner we know it's there, the better our chances of a good outcome."

She then urges any of her followers who have "not yet called their doctor" that her post is "your sign to make it happen."

Dr Julie described the past few weeks as "a rollercoaster."

"I'm going to share some of my journey on stories for anyone who wants updates," she continued.

"I am incredibly lucky that this has been caught so early. Of course, nothing is certain just yet but a couple of surgeries and I should be out the other side. That is another reason I am stepping outside of my comfort zone to talk about this.

"Many people go through this and go on to live full, active and healthy lives. So discovering possible symptoms doesn't have to be a disaster. It can be an opportunity to get ahead in the fight and beat cancer before it has a chance to take over."

She ended her post by saying: "I absolutely have my head in the game for the treatment plan ahead, ready to get going next week. I also have a giant stack of video ideas just waiting to be made, so I can't wait to get back up and running. If you think it could help someone feel free to share this message."

Dr Julie Smith built a large and loyal following online posting easy-to-understand and easily digestible advice on everything from depression, mindset, making habits stick, trauma and high-functioning anxiety.

She has two million followers on Instagram alone.

Her book Why Has Nobody Told Me This Before became a number one Sunday Times bestseller.

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