Steph wants all women to know their boobs.

The popular beauty salon owner and mum of two young boys was 34 years old when diagnosed with an aggressive triple-negative stage three breast cancer.

Five days before Steph had been booked in for a boob job, the March lockdowns hit and she was shutting the doors on eight staff. Personally unable to justify the surgery in such a tumultuous time, Steph cancelled but asked a surgeon in Ballarat if they could instead just remove a cyst that had been lingering for six months.

Nine days later Steph was in a chemotherapy chair.

"I definitely don't want to scare women but I want them all to be mindful and keep checking their boobs - I was really unlucky in my circumstances," Steph said.

"COVID definitely had its pros. I could have gone and had a boob job and woken up with a tumour. It saved my life. It stopped me from having a boob job and got myself checked.

"Things always work out for a reason and I'm going to raise heaps of awareness...The number of women who have contacted me via my socials have been beautiful, even just to say I'm following you and thinking of you."

One young woman this year turned up in the salon with her mum, both keen to meet Steph. The woman had stumbled across Steph's posts and this prompted her to get a closer look at a cyst that also turned out to be cancer.

They thanked Steph for saving her life.

Such a strong following and overwhelming socials sent Steph's mind racing with ideas for how she could channel this into more positive action.

At the same time, Steph was relocating, renovating and rebranding her salon Rubi Wax and Beauty in between treatments.

What kept playing on Steph's mind was that she had fallen into a complacency trap herself - a false sense of security as a young and healthy woman.

The year before Steph's diagnosis, she had been supporting her mum in undergoing breast cancer treatment.

And Steph still neglected to do her own breast check.

Steph's husband found a lump on her breast initially and she went straight to the doctor who said this was likely a cyst. An ultrasound seemed to confirm that theory.

That was in October 2019. By the time the pandemic hit and Steph was delaying her boob job, her surgeon was unable to put a needle into the lump. In six months, the lump had changed a lot.

In the chemo chair, blogging her journey, Steph realised she wanted to take her learnings beyond her salon.

Next weekend, Steph will finally launch her campaign Aware the Pair, encouraging industry peers across the region to distribute shower cards to clients featuring a little of her story with the important reminder to check their breasts.

How do you check your breasts and how did you find it were two key recurring questions women asked Steph on socials.

The shower cards are one way Steph feels she can make a big impact. While Revolution Print has gifted Steph the first set of cards, Steph's end goal is to raise enough support to distribute the cards via salons in Geelong and Melbourne and beyond.

People keep asking Steph how she did everything the past 18 months: the big salon change, face cancer, raise her two young boys and create a breast awareness campaign.

Steph said the need was huge.

"Because if ever there is a point in your life that you're going to do this, it's when someone tells you you're facing stage three cancer. I could've died not knowing," Steph said.

"No matter what you're handed, or what life is, anyone put in that situation can find a way forward and get through by just going through the motions.

"I did have a huge support network."

McGrath breast care nurse and Ballarat mum Joylene Fletcher has previously advocated in The Courier for Ballarat mums to teach young daughters how to check their own breasts in a bid to set good habits and body awareness early.

Ms Fletcher said no breast was perfect but it was important to know your own pair. Early detection could mean less invasive treatment.

IN OTHER NEWS

Steph said the responses she had via social media showed more education was desperately needed. Many women simply did not know how to start.

"You're not too young - I'm proof of that," Steph said.

"There needs to be more awareness. People have become more open to talk about health issues like mental health or diabetes. Not many people seem to talk openly about their boobs."

Recovery is not simple either.

Steph had a full suite of chemo, a double mastectomy and is undergoing a long reconstruction process as well as regular check-ups with her oncologist.

She quipped she ultimately ended up with her boob job because why not get rid of the ones that nearly killed her. This was a chance to start again.

Steph's mum has finished surgeries and treatment, and was recovering well.

Neither cancer was related.

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