Exhibition in Queensgate raises awareness of metastatic breast cancer in women under 50 in the UK

A new exhibition highlighting the seriousness of breast cancer has been put in place in Queensgate Shopping Centre ahead of breast cancer awareness month this October.

METUPUK, which supports women with secondary or metastatic breast cancer – when breast cancer spreads to another area of the body from where it started – is responsible for the exhibition as part of its ‘Darker Side of Pink’ campaign.

Metastatic breast cancer is the biggest killer of women under the age of 50 with cancer in the UK.

The new interactive exhibition uses life-size figures to tell the stories and experiences of 31 women currently living with the disease, representing the 31 women with metastatic breast who die every day in the UK.

Each figure has a unique QR code which, when scanned, plays a video from a woman living with metastatic breast cancer.

The transparency of the silhouettes aims to portray the invisibility of the disease.

Jo Taylor, founder of METUPUK, said: “There is a critical need for awareness of the disease. This is what I have experienced over the years.

"Even patients who have had primary breast cancer are unaware of the red-flag signs and symptoms of metastatic breast cancer and the many issues that MBC patients face when diagnosed.

"There is a real and pressing need for change and that's what this exhibition at Queensgate Shopping Centre aims to highlight.”

METUPUK’s Darker Side of Pink campaign asks people to ‘look beyond the pink and fluffy side of cancer’ – a reference to the well-known annual ‘Wear It Pink’ breast cancer fundraiser.

The videos of the women who feature in the exhibition were filmed last year – but since then, two of the women have passed away.

Mark Broadhead, centre director at Queensgate Shopping Centre, said: “It is an honour to host such a worthy cause here at the Queensgate Centre.

"These women have important stories to tell and we are proud to play a part in sharing them with our community.”

The Darker Side of Pink exhibition is located at North Square, in Queensgate Shopping Centre, and will run until October 6 this year.