Yahoo News Amy Dowden “grateful” her Strictly co-stars helped to keep her new show going
Amy Dowden has expressed how grateful she is to her Strictly co-stars for helping out as she recovered from her mastectomy.
After she was diagnosed with stage three breast cancer during filming, Dowden's fellow Strictly professionals stepped in to coach the contributors on her show Dare to Dance. The show sees incredible individuals learn to dance with Dowden's help.
In an OK! interview, Dowden praised Dianne Buswell, Graziano Di Prima, Oti Mabuse and Carlos Gu for helping out while she was recovering from her surgery.
"I was so grateful that they came on board and did everything to help," she said. "I know them and their personalities and their teaching styles."
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"We started filming and I met all the contributors and asked them to take on this challenge. I’d given them their first few steps and then I was diagnosed," she revealed.
Determined to keep the series going, Dowden turned to her co-stars and friends. "I knew Carlos would be perfect for Kirsty [who grew up dancing but stopped when she lost her sight], and Graz would be perfect for Rich [a firefighter who loves street dance]."
She added that it was a "lovely surprise" for the contributors, who got to "pick up tips" from the pros.
After her mastectomy, Dowden was able to finish filming, claiming it was "exactly what I needed" before starting chemotherapy.
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"When I was there, I was in the world that I love and I was out of my cancer reality so I wasn't thinking about it. It was my true escapism and the tonic that I needed."
Meanwhile, Dowden recently shared an exciting update on her health. In an Instagram post she revealed she had been told there was "no evidence of disease" in her body after undergoing chemotherapy in the last few months.
If you would like more information or support about living with cancer or treatment, please click here for guidance from Macmillan Cancer Support, or click here to learn more from Stand Up to Cancer.
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