A MUM who battled cancer to ride a snow mobile across a glacier and visited the Taj Mahal is now planning to jump out of a plane at 12,000 feet in the next episode of her adventure.

Cheryl Roberts, 39, from Denbigh, was shocked after what she initially thought was back pain turned out to be lymphatic cancer.

Going about life as a mum of a seven and 11-year-old girls, Cheryl found the minor lower back pain did not go away. Weeks turned into months and the pain was worsening, as Cheryl was back and forth to the GP where she was given painkillers. However x-ray scans did not reveal the cause.

It was not until five months later when she keeled over and had to be taken to Glan Clwyd Hospital A&E, where she received a CT scan - revealing she had stage three non-Hodgkin lymphoma.

“It was such a shock,” she said. “I was glad to finally find out what was wrong with me, but the two days between being diagnosed and starting chemotherapy is still a blur.”

The swelling of the lymph node is painless, however it was pressing against Mrs Roberts’ spinal nerves which caused the pain.

Cheryl wanted to keep the diagnosis hidden from her daughters, then aged seven and 11, however as she increasingly became ill she decided to tell them.

She spent six months in chemotherapy, followed by 15 rounds of radiotherapy and then two years in biological therapy.

“I did initially try to hide it from the girls but I was coming home very ill and my hair was falling out, so my husband Paul and I decided to tell them using advice from the charity Macmillan.

“It was very tough and even now I’m not completely the same, I experience a lack of energy, memory loss and eyesight difficulties. But I’m alive and that’s what matters, there are so many people who aren’t able to be treated.”

Since Cheryl was given the all clear in April 2014, she has travelled to countries such as Iceland, India, Belize and Italy because she feels she is “living on borrowed time”.

“I don’t think I would have travelled to all these countries and had these experiences had I not been diagnosed with cancer,” she said. “One thing it has taught me is that you have to do all that you can while you have the time.”

Her next quest will take the form of an airplane and a parachute above Tilstock Airfield in Shropshire to raise £1,000 for Cancer Research UK.

She will be joined by Lisa Rutter, 40, consultant at Greenland Insurance in Denbigh, whose late father Len lost his battle with bowel cancer aged 60. 

Lisa, a former Denbigh High School pupil, said: “It was only 10 months from my dad’s diagnosis to death. People need to go for regular health checks.

“I want to raise awareness and money for this amazing charity to hopefully one day cure cancer once and for all.”

Cheryl added: “I received fantastic treatment at Glan Clwyd Hospital and I cannot thank the hospital and staff enough.

“Everyone knows someone who has been affected by cancer in some way, be it family or friends, and there is a lot of research going on into better treatments.

“Although we're not great at heights, we don’t think there’s a better way to do it!”

The donate to Cheryl and Lisa, visit their Just Giving page.