"MAKE everyday count," says a Southampton woman who has defied the odds after being told she had six months to live. 

In July 2016, Jacqueline Ridout discovered she had ovarian cancer. 

She described her diagnosis as "hard, difficult, and shocking". 

The 50-year-old was accompanied by her parents when she first received the news.

She said: "It was a very emotional time for them. 

"We are a close family and having to tell them once I was diagnosed was one of the toughest things I had to do; much harder than hearing that I had cancer.

"I was numb to the core and I felt sick."

Doctors told Jacqueline, of Redbridge Hill in Millbrook, that her cancer was advanced and she had large 'tennis-ball' size tumours on her ovaries. 

At Southampton General Hospital, she underwent regular check-ups and two rounds of chemotherapy. 

While her cancer is not curable, medication can help control it.

Jacqueline was also diagnosed with breast cancer two years ago, which was another shocking revelation. 

To treat it, she had a left breast mastectomy.

"It was painful to know that cancer kept coming back," she said. 

Although her cancer journey has been tough, Jacqueline has credited her survival to her family, friends, and colleagues. 

She said: "My immediate family, my parents and brother are my worlds. They mean everything to me, and I love them more than life itself. 

"So many of my friends also reached out to me and were there for me at a time when I needed them the most."

In between her operations and overnight stays at the hospital, Jacqueline found solace in writing her journal. 

What started as a way to offload her feelings has now become a full-length book. 

'Warrior Princess Undefeated - my life living with cancer' documents the ups and downs of her health journey. 

"Since the beginning of my ordeal, I have kept a journal of my experiences to give me an outlet and help me focus throughout." 

She added: "I have written this book in the hope it will help others going through cancer, or those watching someone going through it. Daily Echo:

Through her book, Jacqueline hopes to inspire others who live with cancer to get through it as 'positively' as possible.

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