Brenda Edwards reveals how she and her Loose Women panellists including Coleen Nolan lean on each after being affected by cancer: 'It's so important to keep talking'

Brenda Edwards has revealed exclusively to MailOnline how she and fellow Loose Women panellists lean on each other after so many of them have been affected by cancer.

The former X Factor star, 55, was diagnosed with the breast cancer in 2015, while Coleen Nolan recently revealed she checks herself for signs of the disease everyday after the tragic effect it has had on her family. 

She told MailOnline: 'So many people have been effect on the Loose Women panel, including Carol McGiffin, myself, and Coleen at the moment,' 

Ex panellist Carol McGiffin, 64, was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2014 and had a mastectomy that year.

Brenda said: 'It's very important to keep talking, no matter how small you think something is, go check it out with your doctor'.

When asked how the women go about supporting each other she said: 'I'm friends with them, it's not just on the panel, we are friends outside the show,' 

'There's a Loose women Whatsapp group and we are all on there and thats the time where can say if someone is feeling low and you can be sure someone will come along to raise their spirits up'.

Adding: 'It's nice to have that support network but I realise not everyone necessarily has that'. 

'Everyone has a different way of dealing with cancer, but one in two people are effected by  it, wether they have had it or know someone who has, and that's a really high static to prove we really need to raise awareness'. 

Brenda found a lump under her right breast at the end of 2015 and began six months of chemotherapy before having a mastectomy and breast reconstruction. 

She spoke to MailOnline as part of the new GenesisCare Second Chance campaign which aims to raise awareness of where in the body secondary cancer is most likely to strike and the symptoms to look out for.

Secondary breast cancer, also known as metastatic breast cancer, is when tumour cells which started in the breast move to other parts of the body. 

Speaking about her own battle with the disease Brenda said: 'Some things are out of your control, cancer is definitely one of them, but for me it was trying to be as positive as possible'.

'72% of breast cancer survivors are unaware of what areas of your body can be effected by secondary breast cancer to know what to look for'. 

Adding: 'The most likely areas to effected by breast cancer are your head, your brain, your lungs, your skin, your liver'. 

It comes after Coleen, who is one if six sisters, candidly admitted she is terrified she will be the family member targeted by the disease next. 

Cancer has significantly affected the Nolan family after the sisters lost Bernie, 52, in 2013 after a three year battle with breast cancer. 

Meanwhile both Anne, 73, and Linda, 65, have also both battled breast cancer with Linda's becoming incurable after it returned in 2017. 

Speaking to The Mirror last week, Coleen opened up about the preventative measures she takes as she explained: 'We have had so much heartache... I'm always checking. I still have this thing when I think, "What if I have missed it?"

'Whenever I'm in the shower, I will have a good feel and check and if there is ever a time when I think "I don't like that", I will go to the doctor straight away. And they will say "It's fine, it's a little cyst or an infection".

While Coleen hopes she doesn't get the disease, she explained that if she is unfortunate she wants to catch it early. 

Revealing how much she spends on health care, she admitted: 'My breast specialist is £225 a year. People say, "It's all right for you, you've got money". But you could probably spend that in a year on takeaways, down the pub or on cigarettes.'

The TV star pays for regular appointments with a breast specialist, in addition to her NHS mammogram every two years.

The eldest Nolan sister Anne, 73, was first diagnosed with cancer in 2000 and then two decades later revealed she had been diagnosed with stage three breast cancer. 

Fortunately she revealed she was cancer free in December of that year after undergoing a course of chemotherapy. 

Meanwhile their other sister Linda, 65, was first diagnosed with stage-three breast cancer in 2005 before getting the all-clear in 2006.

But the disease sadly returned in 2017 and spread to her liver and brain.

Coleen told the publication that Linda has now admitted she waited too long before getting checked, whereas both times Anne found a lump it was only the size of a 'grain of rice' and she has never needed a mastectomy.

Brenda features in the powerful new Second Chance photography exhibition which includes a series of striking, anatomical close-up images of her chest, stomach, back, head and skin. Each image aims to highlight a key area of the body where secondary breast cancer is most likely to strike and the most common symptoms to look out for. 

This unique, brave and emotive exhibition is made even more moving as it also includes images of Secondary Breast Cancer patients treated at GenesisCare. All images have been captured by Abigail Fahey a photographer and breast cancer survivor.

The purpose of the Second Chance photography exhibition - which goes on display at GenesisCare centre Surrey in October - is to powerfully engage, inform, educate and drive conversation around this lesser-known yet deadly cancer and help bust the myths that often surround it.

Brenda Edwards is fronting the new GenesisCare Second Chance campaign which aims to raise awareness of where in the body secondary cancer is most likely to strike and the symptoms to look out for. Visit www.genesiscare.com/uk/second-chance for more information.