AS SHE endured months of chemotherapy, radiation and operations, there was a little voice cheering on Warwick woman Sarah Worth and keeping her focused on the finish line.

The enthusiastic supporter gave her strength through the hard times and reminded her the pain was temporary.

And those positive words belonged to her five-year-old son, Billy.

Sarah was diagnosed with breast cancer last year and has since had to endure six months of chemotherapy, one month of radiation and four operations, including a double mastectomy.

At times, too weak and unwell to do the things mums do, Sarah took strength from her family; husband Jason, daughter Lara, 4, and Billy.

"Billy was fantastic - he was my biggest supporter," she said.

"He would come home and say 'how are you feeling today, mum?'

"After, say treatment number four, I would tell him I wasn't feeling too good today and he would smile and say, 'only two more to go'.

"He counted down the treatments with me. He was my cheerleader."

Although Billy and Lara, then aged four and three, were too young to fully comprehend the situation, Sarah told them she was sick.

"We told them there was a bug in my boob and the doctors had to cut it out - I think all the kids at school have heard that story," Sarah laughed.

"We decided to tell them because we don't keep secrets from them and I knew it was going to be a long treatment," she said.

"I was going to lose my hair and be sick and have operations, so they would be wondering what was going on."

When she found the suspicious lump in her breast, then 33-year-old Sarah admits cancer was the last thing on her mind.

"I noticed a change in the size of my boob and so I did a self-check and that's how I found it," she said.

"I waited about a week and it hadn't changed so I went to the doctor."

After speaking to her GP, Sarah was sent to Toowoomba for a mammogram and ultrasound.

"I thought they would say it's nothing - maybe just a blocked milk duct - because I am so young," she said.

"It's so stupid because afterwards the waiting room got emptier and emptier and I was still sitting there, but I still didn't think anything was wrong. Then they said it is 'something' but they will know for sure tomorrow.

"And that's when you cry."

The next year was a fight for survival and Sarah was forced to face the possibility she might not survive.

"It is still all a bit of a blur - I lost 12 months of my life. I just worried about my kids because they are so young," she said. "Nobody tells you you're not going to die - nobody says that - they only tell you they'll do everything they can."

Although she says Billy was her biggest supporter, there was no shortage of people rallying around to offer a helping hand.

Her colleagues and bosses at the Warwick Credit Union were especially supportive and held her job for her while she recovered.

The WCU team even coordinated a roster and cooked meals so the Worth family would have one less thing to worry about. Her parents, Lois and John, were an invaluable source of support and friends and even strangers reached out by cooking meals for the Worths.

The diagnosis also impacted Jason, who became mum and dad.

"He had to support me emotionally and then take care of the kids as well - it was like sole parenting," Sarah said.

The mum of two says she is positive about her future and now has checks every three months to monitor her progress.

While it has been a tough year for the Worth family, there have been some positives come from Sarah's cancer diagnosis.

"It makes you approach life differently - I just think 'do it now and don't wait'. That's why I am going skiing at Thredbo. I have always wanted to but have never seen snow."