An inspirational grandmother-of-eight who has battled colorectal cancer has shaved her head for charity.

Following her diagnosis last year, 71-year-old Irene Paine from Canterbury is raising awareness of the illness, and hopes to help break down the stigma that surrounds it.

“Bowel cancer is not spoken about like breast cancer,” she said. “And I think it needs to be.”

After Irene’s bowel habits changed and she began feeling ill, she visited the doctor and was sent for a colonoscopy.

Irene was diagnosed with stage 3 rectal cancer, and was started on a six-week course of daily chemotherapy and radiotherapy last December.

In April this year, she underwent major surgery to remove the cancer from her bowel, and was permanently fitted with a stoma bag - a pouch that sits outside the stomach and collects excrement.

The grandmother says she “feels fine”, but is still waiting to find out the results of her surgery.

She is now keen to encourage others to get check-ups if they feel anything is wrong.

“It’s like the taboo subject,” said Irene, who lives with husband Jim, 63, at Canon Appleton Court retirement complex in Wincheap.

“Who wants to talk about poo? But sometimes you just have to.

“People shouldn’t be hiding their stoma bag and feeling ‘I can’t do this and can’t do that’. People need to talk about it.

“I talk about it quite openly - if someone wants to see my bag, they can have a look at it. Nothing stops me.”

Irene still manages to go swimming regularly, and wants to show people that life goes on even after having a stoma bag fitted.

“Like any other cancer, it’s horrible,” she said. “It’s a horrible operation, it’s a horrible disease. But I’m one of the lucky ones. I’ve got it sorted.

“It’s so important that if people have a change in bowel habit, no matter how small, they have to go see a doctor about it.”

Last weekend, she and Jim had their heads shaved, to raise money for charity Bowel Cancer UK.

They have collected more than £1,100 in donations, with an additional £110 pledged by Tesco in Whitefriars, where Irene worked until last year.

“I am so proud,” she said. “So is my husband. I would never have believed we could have raised anything like that.

“Without surgeons, nurses and the bowel cancer experts who all saved my life I would not have survived.

“Any donation to this charity will maybe one day help to find a cure for this horrible disease.”

To donate to the couple’s fundraiser, visit their Justgiving page .

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