Leading horse racing trainer Jessica Harrington has spoken about the impact of her on-going cancer treatment, in her first media interview on the topic since her diagnosis.
Ireland's most successful woman trainer was diagnosed with breast cancer in October.
The Cheltenham Gold Cup-winner told Katie Hannon on Upfront: The Podcast that her first reaction to hearing she had cancer was that she was "too old" to receive such a diagnosis.
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"I survived my 75 years without having cancer. And once you get over 65, you come off the list for automatic pap smear tests and mammograms. You're considered too old to get it. Unfortunately, I wasn’t."
"I definitely did a bit of crying," she said, speaking from her stables in Kildare.
Harrington, who has saddled seven winners at the Cheltenham festival, has been undergoing chemotherapy treatment in recent months and won’t be in attendance at next week’s showpiece.
"I haven't been racing because I don't want to be mixing with a lot of people because of getting infections. I did 12 weeks having treatment every week, and I have got two more to go. I see the light at the end of the tunnel and it's absolutely fantastic.
"Everything's gone so-far-so-good. We've a few more things to be done. I've got to have an operation and then probably have some radiotherapy. So, you know, we’ve still got a bit more to do, but at least I might get some hair back."
While she has experienced some difficulties during her recovery, Harrington has been determined to remain upbeat.
"I think having dark days with cancer, the cancer might feed on that. That's my attitude. So therefore, we can't have dark days. But if you do have a bit of a blip, you pull yourself up and carry on because there's an awful lot of other people much worse than you are."
While Harrington won't be able to make the trip to Prestbury Park next week she will be sending a number of horses. Of the four championship races at Cheltenham, the Stayers’ Hurdle is the only one that has eluded Harrington’s stable but she's hopeful Ashdale Bob can right that record.
"I would love to get it as it would complete the full house."
"I'm not certain he will win, but it could be placed. But, you know, if everything went right, he has the ability to win that race."
All episodes of 'Upfront: The Podcast' can be found here, or wherever you get your podcasts.
