Wiltshire | Archive | 2007 | December | 2

She's just a bundle of energy after life saving decision

From the archive, first published Sunday 2nd Dec 2007.

A FORMER beauty queen who had her breasts removed to avoid the cancer curse that blighted her family has joined the Pebley Beach team.

A year to the day after hitting the national headlines when revealing that she was undergoing a double mastectomy, despite being perfectly healthy, Sarah-Jane Howe launched a new career - selling Hyundai cars at Pebley's Eldene, Swindon showroom.

Mum-of-three Sarah-Jane (34), from Ashton Keynes - who has since undergone the operation - said the mastectomy has almost certainly saved her life.

"Four close family members died of cancer, and it was breast cancer that took my mum and my aunt," she said.

"I went for genes testing and was told I had a 90 per cent chance of getting cancer. The operation means there's now a 90 percent chance I won't."

Sarah-Jane landed the job after walking into Pebley's showroom - or to be precise, walking into a post outside as she looked at a Hyundai Santa Fe.

"I accidentally kicked the post," said Sarah-Jane.

"My foot was bleeding and while I was being bandaged up by the manager, we got talking about career opportunities at Pebley - now here I am!" The post has since been removed.

Sarah-Jane has enjoyed a varied career. After training in hairdressing and beauty therapy at North Star College, she was the youngest winner of the Miss Thamesdown title - aged 17 - in 1990. Five years later she won the Miss Swindon crown after slimming down from a size 18 to size 10 in six months.

Her sales experience comes from running bars. At the age of 19 she was managing the Cape of Good Hope in Oxford and she was also landlady of the Cross Keys pub (now Picklejohn's) in Old Town.

Now, when she's not helping customers at the Pebley Beach Hyundai showroom, Sarah-Jane is raising the profile of, and funds for, breast cancer awareness charities. "It's important to let women in my situation know about the choice I had, that's why I don't mind talking about my operation," she explained.

"I did the Moonwalk in London this year, where thousands of men and women put on bras and walk a marathon in aid of breast cancer treatment and research.

"Next year I want to run the London Marathon and Pebley Beach has an excellent reputation for helping charities.

Dominic Threlfall, director of Pebley Beach, said: "Sarah-Jane is an excellent salesperson. She's a great communicator, extremely personable, caring and attuned to customers' needs. As a company we'll be proud to be associated with, and supportive of, any fundraising or profile-raising events that she engages in."