Sarah Hughes, 43, and her 47-year-old partner Paul Crook, from Runcorn, have both been diagnosed with cancer – and are raising money to make memories ‘while they still can’
A brave couple have said they are determined to create lasting memories “while they still can” after both being diagnosed with cancer.
After months of feeling unwell, grandma and mum-of-two Sarah Hughes, from Runcorn, Cheshire, was given the devastating news in March 2020 that she had breast cancer. Having had a mastectomy and several rounds of treatment, the 43-year-old received the all-clear in April 2021. Her best friend, Kristy Boyce, 46, said that everything seemed “fine” after this – until Sarah visited her GP earlier this year for a viral infection.
Explaining what happened next, Kristy told the told the Echo: “At the time they [doctors] didn’t think it was anything to do with cancer, they thought it was a viral infection which had caused her to have trouble with her breathing.
“Looking back, she’d had pains in her bones which she now realised were because of the cancer. The doctors sent her to the hospital and they did a scan and found there was cancer in her bones.”
“She was sent to an oncologist who did more tests, an MRI and biopsy and in April 2025 she got the diagnosis that it was secondary breast cancer that had gone into her bone and can’t be cured.”
Kristy, who has known Sarah since their school days, told the ECHO how the “devastating” news “shocked” everyone. She said: “We went to the same school together but we became best friends from around the age of 18 when we started going out together.
“She started dating my boyfriend at the time’s friend, then we both were pregnant at the same time with our first babies, we moved over the road from each other and then had boys who are the same age as well. Our kids grew up together and we were always together taking them places, they played football together too.”
“It has been devastating to find out she has been diagnosed with cancer again. We have loads of memories over the years, we’ve done so much together, holidays, concerts, nights out, we’ve always been together.
“When Sarah first found out she was devastated, she was so shocked. It’s secondary so it can’t be cured.
“She has been started on hormone and chemotherapy treatment to make sure it doesn’t spread anywhere else, to stop it from growing and to prolong her life for as long as they can.”
Sarah is a a mother to Megan, 23, and Tre, 18, and a grandmother to twin three-year-old boys.
Her partner of 13 years, Paul Crook, 47, was also diagnosed with tonsil cancer earlier this year.
Paul, a father of five, discovered a lump in his neck just after Christmas, and was initially given antibiotics from doctors, who suspected an infection.
But Kristy explained: “The lump wasn’t making him feel unwell, he had no symptoms, but it was quite noticeable and he was a bit worried about it. He was referred for scans and a biopsy and in February he was diagnosed with tonsil cancer.”
Paul is set to undergo surgery in June to remove the cancer, followed by radiotherapy. Kristy is optimistic that he will make a full recovery.
Describing the impact of the double diagnosis on the couple, she said: “It’s so heartbreaking for them both having to go through this. It’s been a really bad strap for them, trying just trying to get through it as best as they can, they’re both strong people and are keeping as positive as they can for each other.”
As the couple have had to temporarily stop working, Kristy has launched a GoFundMe page to help make her “best friend’s dreams come true.”
She explained: “They want to use this time to do as much as they can before Sarah gets too ill. One of the main things they want to do is go to New York, it is a bucket list dream of hers.
“It will mean the world to them if they get to go and any donations will mean they can make all the memories that they want.”