Mary Bradley had an idyllic childhood growing up in rural west Ireland with her four brothers and her parents, Maureen and Vincent, who ran the Holiday Hotel in Salthill, Galway.

However, in 2001, a bombshell hit this happy family when Mary's mother, then 63, was diagnosed with breast cancer. Mary, who had already written a book about her husband's battle with MS, kept a memoir as she helped nurse her mother.

In this extract, Mary writes about how conventional forms of treatment, such as radiation therapy and chemotherapy, were abandoned when the cancer persisted. She describes what was tried next after hearing that the cancer had spread to Maureen's bones.

November 2006

"The spread of her cancer is relentless. I am fortunate that my brother, Dr Phil Boyle, is going to help treat our mum. I have four brothers, and the five of us have joined forces and decided to try to figure out Mum's best path through this ugly maze.

"This is our final plan of attack now, as follows: 1) OGF shot twice daily; 2) 200mg Noscapine five times a day; 3) Buckets of multivitamins and anti-cancer diet; 4) Bombard heaven with prayers; 5) Consider cancer clinics in Mexico if this does not work

"OGF, or Opioid Growth Factor, shots increase endorphin production. I will briefly explain the theory. When a person takes LDN -- Low Dose Naltrexone -- endorphin production triples, which in turn boosts and regulates the immune system, and the person generally lives happily ever after. LDN didn't work for Mum, so now we are going to give her the LDN effect in a shot. OGF shots are basically synthetic endorphins.

"Noscapine is a pain reliever and, as an added bonus, it is also proving quite successful in preliminary pancreatic cancer trials in Israel. It is relatively cheap, with minimum side effects, and can be taken orally. Please God, happily ever after is just around the corner for us.

December 2006

"Mum is in wonderful spirits. She recently took a trip to Medugorje and has decided that her cancer is a privilege. She is honoured to help Jesus carry the cross. She has a powerful mindset and could not be happier with our current strategy. She does not pretend that she understands it but she feels good about it. When I got upset at the thought of losing her she calmly told me, 'I'm going nowhere Mary!'

April 2007

"I have to get some permanent help in place and I am thinking a visit from a physical therapist to help teach me how to exercise Mum's lungs would be good too. Mum is in great spirits. As I hooked her up to the drip last night she told Phil that she saw an angel yesterday. As if this was normal, Phil asked her if the angel told her anything about meeting soon or otherwise.

"'Not that type of angel -- I mean a real one. A six-month-old baby!' Mum laughed.

A very young lady had visited Mum with her baby. When she had been pregnant, her boyfriend left her and her mum was dying of cancer. Her mum has since passed, but the young girl never forgot Mum's kindness and support. It was a very special visit. It made Mum's day.

"Visits such as these work wonders. Her response to the people she loves continues to inspire me because it proves how connected we all are. It is powerful to witness this.

July 2007

"Phil and my brothers are in Henley and Phil forgot to leave some pretty crucial supplies, so we had to break into his place in Galway and get some stuff. Our equipment has a real MacGyver feel to all of it. None of this was funny and it still isn't. I am very tired and the whole procedure is nerve-wracking enough without goof-ups that really could have been avoided.

"That said, I am keen to stick to our 21-day plan, so Noel and I mixed the solution with what we had and although I flushed the plug in Mum's arm with Heparin, the drip went in slower than we would have liked. Please God today will be easier. On the plus side, today cannot possibly go any worse.

"Mum is very weak today. Now that I see the effects of Morphine I am all the more thankful for the months Noscapine gave us. My priority is pain management and comfort. When awake, Mum is not exactly herself, but the essence is still there. She is high. That is the only way I can put it because she is.

"At this stage of the game, being high is not a bad thing. Now she really, really, really loves the world and everything in it. When awake, her love of everything is exaggerated. She hasn't a care or an ache. She is happy.

"Her waking periods are getting short and her fluid intake is reducing daily and her breathing is getting slower and deeper. As I held her hand this morning she kept trying to tell me that she felt fantastic, but her eyes were rolling and her tongue was thick.

Since then I just nod and smile when I have no clue what she is saying. She likes me holding her hand. Her grip is weaker today.

August 2007

"Mum died at about 12:30am. It was beautiful. She was blessed with the perfect death. Dad, my four brothers and I surrounded her bed. Pat played his guitar and we prayed, sang and recited. She knew we were there and, as we sang, her colour drained and she left us.

"I called Granny on the phone as Mum drew her last breath, so we were all together. It was lovely.

"A nurse from the Irish Cancer Society helped me change Mum and lay her out. She looks absolutely beautiful. She is wearing the blue dress that she wore to Aisling's First Holy Communion. Mother Mary's colour. Mum was granted every grace imaginable. She died the death of her dreams and I don't feel like she has gone very far.

"She has gone 'nowhere'. She is 'now here'. The spelling is the same.

"My computer is set up beside Mum. I am looking at her as I type. She asked that one day I write another book. Mum loved me sharing her story. Perhaps I will."

Mary has since compiled the journal into a book called Going Nowhere and is currently looking for an agent

Don't ignore that troublesome mole

Sharon O'Beirne was just 31 when diagnosed with skin cancer. She didn't think much about it once the cancerous mole was removed. But a little over 18 months later, she died.

Now her mother, Bernie Rice, has joined a campaign to get the message across that no-one is immune to skin cancer.

"My daughter wasn't a sun-worshipper, she rarely sunbathed and yet she succumbed to skin cancer. People really need to know about the dangers. We didn't know how important early detection is. If you are in doubt about a mole or mark on your skin, you need to get it checked out."

Bernie says once Sharon went to her doctor she received immediate attention, with the mole being removed two days later. Apart from returning for regular three-monthly check-ups, Sharon largely forgot about it and carried on with plans for her forthcoming marriage.

She was delighted when her three-monthly check-ups were reduced to six-monthly intervals, and the family believed the trauma was over.

In June, Sharon married in a beautiful ceremony. But when moving into her new house afterwards Sharon experienced a pain in her leg. She went back to her GP and was told that the cancer had spread to her lymph nodes.

Bernie says: "Sharon started treatment but despite all this we had a lovely Christmas together. Then in January Sharon took sick again. She went into hospital and had a scan that showed the cancer was in her liver. They operated on her and she began chemotherapy.

"She managed to pull through all that and was due to come home at the end of January. But then her condition worsened and she died on February 2 this year."

Deirdre Keane of the Irish Cancer Society says that there were over 6,800 new cases of skin cancer in 2005 and that malignant melanoma is the second most common cancer in the 30-45 year age group.

"Incidence of this cancer has doubled every 10 years and it has a very high mortality rate if not detected early," says Keane.

For further information on skin cancer prevention and early detection call the National Cancer Helpline on freefone 1800 200 700 which is staffed by specialist nurses from 9am-7pm Monday-Thursday and Fridays from 9am-5pm.

- Sarah Spendiff