Stage 3 cervical cancer treatment brings new perspective on life for photographer – she’s taken up meditation, stopped working overtime and adopted a largely plant-based diet

Julia Broad panicked at first, but meditation and breathwork helped her through cancer treatment. The disease has made her rethink her priorities

The Hong Kong-based Australian no longer pushes herself as hard, has largely given up eating meat, and spends more time with her husband, daughter and friends

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Julia Broad, a 37-year-old photographer, was diagnosed with stage 3 cervical cancer in early 2021. She emerged from treatment with a new perspective on life, she says. Photo: Winson Wong

Published: 7:15pm, 22 Nov 2021

When she first heard the diagnosis, Julia Broad’s first thought was, ‘I am going to die’.

The 37-year-old Australian photographer, who has been living in Hong Kong for five years, was admitted to hospital with a pelvic infection in late 2020. After a round of tests, in early 2021 she was told she had stage 3 cervical cancer. She was terrified.

“The doctors had initially recommended a hysterectomy, but changed their minds as the tumour was larger than anticipated, and the cancer had spread to the lymph nodes. Surgery would not be of any help, I was told,” she says.

A cancer diagnosis is always difficult, but even more so during the coronavirus pandemic. “My husband was in Australia at the time. He rushed back, but I had to wait for him to finish 21 days in quarantine before I could be with him. Thankfully I had an amazing network of friends who kept me strong,” Broad says.

After her diagnosis, Julia Broad had to wait for her husband to go through 21 days of quarantine before she could see him. Photo: Winson Wong

Breaking the news to her nine-year-old daughter was heartbreaking. “I sat down with her and explained that our bodies have healthy and unhealthy cells, and that mummy was going to get her unhealthy cells removed,” shares Broad. “Her first question was ‘Mummy, are you going to lose your hair?’”

Once the news sunk in, Broad oscillated between optimism and despair. “My thoughts jumped from visualising my tumour shrinking and fading away to wanting to run away to my childhood home in Australia. I cried, hugged and worried harder than I ever thought possible,” she says. She missed her parents, who live in Australia and could not travel.