Daniell Kelman, 33, diagnosed with ovarian cancer four years ago

Why me? That's the first thing I asked myself. My husband had taken me to the hospital and, while he parked the car, I went in alone. The doctors came straight out with it, very professional, no beating around the bush, 'We've done the biopsy and you have cancer'.

It had been my gut feeling all along. I'd noticed lumps inside my tummy and waited a few months to see if it affected my periods, which it didn't. I eventually went to the doctor who thought they were cysts and the hospital in Watford confirmed this. Although no one had mentioned it, the first thing I thought when they said 'cysts' was 'cancer'. You just have a gut feeling about your own body.

They were full of cancerous fluid and the doctors needed to act immediately. 'You'll need a hysterectomy and chemotherapy', they said. I was in shock but just had to get on with it. Your main priority is surviving at that point and you don't want to think about anything else.

There was a history of cancer in my family but more breast than ovarian. Is it because I smoked, I asked? Not at all, I was possibly/probably born with it, the doctors said. Normally found in menopausal women, to find it in a 29 year old was a rare case and 'just one of those things'. But you can't help blaming yourself. I went through this terrible period of guilt, thinking I got it because I was a nasty, wicked person. But there's no rhyme or reason.

The operation would be in March, which meant I was only knowingly living with cancer for a month. I was told not to go home and read up on the disease because I'd only drive myself mad. But I did, and it was the only time I thought to myself 'I'm going to die'.

I was reading the wrong things, focusing on percentages of deaths amongst women, things that didn't even relate to me. And I started obsessing about the statistics that one in three people have had, will have or now have cancer. I'd be walking around, see a group of people and think 'Well, I have, have you?'

"You can't help blaming yourself. I went through this terrible period of guilt, thinking I got cancer because I was a nasty, wicked person." Daniell Kelman

So I stopped reading the internet and got on with things. Mind over matter, that's the most important thing, you've just got to will yourself better, providing you can. Dying wasn't an option, I knew I'd caught it early enough so there was no reason I would if everything worked.

The operation was successful and chemotherapy started in April. Each chemo is tailor-made to the individual person and cancer, so some are more aggressive than others. Mine was six injections in total – one every three weeks. It left me feeling sick and lethargic to the point of not being able to get out of bed. But after four days, I'd feel fine again until the next session.

By September, I was given the all clear and felt good. As I run a delicatessen with my husband, I was able to take the nine months off, but was happy to get back and not to be a cancer patient anymore.

Since then, I think back on that period of my life a lot, there's always references to it. There's certain foods I can't eat now because I went off them while on chemo, I've got a big scar down my tummy and the fact I don't have children is a daily reminder. But it gets easier, and you can't miss what you don't have. You just get on with it and play with the cards you were dealt.

Facing your own mortality puts life in perspective and I look at things differently now. I've rejoined performing arts classes, something I loved when I was in school. If I want to go away for a weekend at short notice, I'll do it. A lot of people hear the word cancer and assume it means death. But it doesn't. If you're worried, see your doctor and get checked out. Because if it is cancer, the sooner it's diagnosed, the more chance you have to get better.

Sally Kalman, of Crane Kalman Gallery, helped her mother fight ovarian cancer for ten years

My mother was 56, healthy, slim, tall, beautiful, played tennis three times a week, ate well and had the odd, sociable cigarette. It took her a year to discover she had ovarian cancer.

There was this niggling pain in the lower part of her abdomen and she went to a gynaecologist and doctors who all missed it. She was shocked when she was finally diagnosed, her world collapsed when she heard the word 'cancer'. But she had a lot to live for; a loving husband, three children, and lovely life, so she was determined to fight.

It was a rollercoaster of ups and downs and we often felt guilty asking her to have more treatment and operations (five in total), but we wanted her to live. Together, we worked at helping her stay positive and she put 100 per cent faith in her oncologist and surgeon rather than reading up on it. She was brave and stoical and fought it for ten years – almost unheard of – before dying of it in 2001.

"We felt guilty asking her to have more treatment and operations (five in total), but we wanted her to live." Sally Kalman

In September, my nine and 13 year old sons, Daniel and Benjamin, completed Hadrian's Wall walk to raise money for Ovarian Cancer Action in memory of their grandmother. It is 85 miles in total, a 12 to 15-mile walk each day for a week, accompanied by my husband. They raised £9,000 and got quite a lot of attention along the way. If it helps makes more people aware of ovarian cancer and its silent symptoms, then we'll be very happy.

Ovarian cancer symptoms to watch:

• Tummy or pelvic pain
• Increased tummy size or bloating
• Needing to go to the loo more frequently and urgently
• Difficulty eating/feeling full
• Other persistent and frequent symptoms can include: unexplained weight loss, or weight gain around the tummy, indigestion, nausea, changes in bowel habits, excessive tiredness and abnormal vaginal bleeding

For more information and advice, visit www.ovarian.org.uk

By Barbara Walshe