Wendy Watson MBE is the founder and director of the National Hereditary Breast Cancer Helpline. Following her pioneering risk reducing double mastectomy in 1993 Wendy felt impelled to raise awareness so others could make their own informed decisions and 1996 set up the National Hereditary Breast Cancer Helpline. The helpline, and Wendy’s advocacy, has helped 10’s of thousands of people take control of their lives, fought to keep genetic testing legal and available in Europe, influenced the current legal obligations of the insurance industry on gene testing, ensured services are equitable through NICE Guidelines, gained specialist commissioning for genetic services that weren’t funded and provided 7 days per week 18 hours per day direct contact for everyone worried. Baroness Cumberlege told the BBC that she thought Wendy was enormously courageous and would push this whole area forward in a way that the professionals couldn’t.
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