Five months pregnant and managing the emergency services response to the COVID -19 pandemic, Kate Fitzgerald was shocked when she was diagnosed with bowel cancer in 2020.

Kate discusses with Stephanie the difficult decisions she faced, not only for her health, but the health of her unborn baby, including possible termination and miscarriage as well as the five-hour surgery which involved her baby and womb being taken out of her body so the surgeon could remove the tumour.

Sharing her inspirational story, Kate says had she not been pregnant, she would probably have ignored her symptoms until it was too late, crediting her daughter, baby Ava, with saving her life.