SOAP & TROTTER
EastEnders’ Cheryl Fergison and toyboy husband pictured for the first time since she revealed she had womb cancer
The actress recalled how the terrifying ordeal had impacted her mental health
EASTENDERS star Cheryl Fergison and toyboy husband Yassine El Jamoun were spotted since her heartbreaking cancer diagnosis.
The actress, who played Heather Trott in the BBC soap for five years, looked in good spirits on a night out in Blackpool.
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Cheryl, who finally got the all clear last year after being diagnosed with the disease in 2015, wore a green floral midi dress to host a 50s/60s night at a Chinese restaurant in Thorton-Cleverleys.
The 58-year-old star was joined by her partner Yassine, who is 20 years younger than her.
The pair looked happy as they strolled through Blackpool on Sunday - making the most of their Bank Holiday weekend.
Her day out comes just weeks after she opened up about developing obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) following her diagnosis.
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Cheryl joined ITV's Loose Women and recalled how the terrifying ordeal had impacted her mental health.
Cheryl explained: "It was washing bits of my body, trying to wash it away.
"We all try and control our own body in some way, but actually sometimes we can harm ourselves by trying to do something, than actually getting the help.
"It wasn't everyday but it was continuous over a period of years and it would stop.
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"My husband and son would help me out and periods of times I would stop.
"Putting on a brave face for the general public out there, carrying on daily life...knowing I was actually hurting and harming myself in some way.
EastEnders' Cheryl Fergison's love story
"But I think you need to get to the root of the problem, there is not enough groups of people in communities sitting down talking about this.
"We know there is no money in the NHS - but we can all try as a community to help each other and work out the problems."
During her health battle, Cheryl was supported by co-stars Dame Barbara Windsor and Steve McFadden.
She continued: "I've had loads of support from my family, my lovely husband, my son.
"Steve McFadden, Barbara Windsor, Linda Henry, Paul O'Grady...everybody who knew was just amazing."
Late Barbara, who played Queen Vic matriarch Peggy Mitchell, supported Cheryl financially.
At the time, Cheryl was experiencing some money troubles and kind Babs insisted on helping out with the bills, leaving the grateful star in tears.
Cheryl, who is mum to son Alex, 16, from her first marriage, had a smear test which came back clear before she began experiencing back pain and blood spotting.
It prompted her to go for a check up and, four months after having a biopsy, Cheryl was told she had stage 2 womb cancer.
Cheryl underwent a hysterectomy, robbing her of the chance of having another child, and she told how the disease brought upon early menopause.
It affected how she saw herself as a woman with Cheryl calling it an "horrendous time".
There were times when she questioned if she would survive the illness.
She told the Mirror: "Yes, there were some dark moments when I thought: ‘am I going to die?’ Am I going to leave my husband without a wife, my son without a mum? But I am strong and I’d knock those thoughts away. I was determined that it wasn’t going to beat me.”
Cheryl finally got the all clear last year and is now urging women to listen to their bodies and investigate anything that doesn't feel right.
Womb cancer is the fourth most common type of the disease in women in the UK.
But worryingly, many have no idea what the most common symptoms are, meaning it's often found at a late stage.
Almost 10,000 people are diagnosed every year. Around 2,500 die.
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Of those told they have womb cancer early, 90 per cent survive.
But only one in five patients will live beyond five years if it isn't detected until the disease is in an advanced stage.
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