Julia Bradbury refuses to live in fear of cancer
Julia Bradbury - who was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2021 - isn't scared of the possibility of battling the disease again.
Julia Bradbury doesn't fear a recurrence of cancer.
The 55-year-old presenter had a mastectomy after being diagnosed with breast cancer in 2021 and explained that she has strived to improve her health in the five years since her diagnosis.
Julia told Woman's Weekly magazine: "My markers are regular checks, good sleep, low inflammation, feeling strong. I've improved my health and fitness, month on month, year on year, since 2021."
The former Countryfile host, who has been given the all-clear from the disease, explained that she seeks to keep a positive mindset through techniques such as meditation.
Bradbury said: "We shape a lot of who we are by our self-talk, so I'm positive on that front. It's why I love meditation, chanting and nature. They are powerful moments of self-reflection."
Julia travelled to Antarctica for a 24-day exhibition last year – which will be documented in the ITV series Julia Bradbury's Wonders of the Frozen South – and admits that it was a hard decision to leave her family behind for the longest time she has spent away from home since her cancer battle.
The star – who has son Zephyr, 14, and twin daughters Xanthe and Zena, 10, with her partner Gerard Cunningham – said: "This was a tough journey to leave my family for so long and a really big decision to make this series.
"I don't want to live under a cloud of fear. I had to prove to myself that I could still do this, that there was a strength within me and that I was brave enough."
Julia explained that she came to close to comfort with a crumbling iceberg during filming for the show.
The former Watchdog presenter said: "They are so unpredictable.
"We were filming and I was pointing at an iceberg, which had a big crack. I said, 'We've got no idea when that bit of the iceberg is going to drop into the ocean.'
"Almost on cue, there was an enormous cracking, and a huge chunk plunged into the water right in front of us."
Julia previously revealed how she was moved to tears when making the show as she felt that it was a "pivotal point" in her recovery from cancer.
She told the Daily Mail: "After a breast cancer diagnosis and mastectomy in 2021, I didn’t think I’d ever be brave enough to leave the safety of my home and family to do something like this again.
"I was so weak physically, and so emotionally raw, that the idea of testing myself, of making this kind of TV show and being so far away from my partner and our children seemed impossible.
"To achieve it five years after cancer felt like a pivotal point in my recovery, proof I could return to the adventures that I love."
