A first-time mum who has been diagnosed with cancer has shared a tender clip of her and her partner shaving their heads together.

Zoe Plastiras previously made the headlines after finding a "grapefruit-sized" tumour in her chest cavity while she was 32-weeks pregnant.

For the first-time mum, aged 23, she was shocked to discover her frequent bouts of breathlessness were due to the mass, but wasn't able to receive treatment until her baby, Opheila, now four months old, was born.

She underwent various needle biopsies and a surgical biopsy to receive her final diagnosis of Stage 2 Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma.

Now, she's documenting her journey on Instagram (@lymphomaawarenesszoe) in a bid to raise awareness of her symptoms and to share information for other patients who may be facing a similar diagnosis.

In a recent clip, which has racked up 15,000 views and over 1,000 likes, Zoe, along with her partner, Joe, are shown shaving each other's heads.

"Originally, I was told I'd need open chest surgery, which petrified me. It would have meant I couldn't pick up my baby for two or three months while I recovered. The idea of this was heart wrenching. I cried so many tears," the self-employed brow technician and make-up artist told NeedToKnow.Online

"I didn't like knowing I'd need to leave my newborn for appointments and surgeries.

"I got to 32 weeks pregnant and kept losing my breath and had a bit of a cough with movement.

"111 told me to get to hospital in an ambulance but I finished work first and headed to A&E where they X-rayed me and took my bloods.

“I was discharged and told I had a “slight abnormality” with my heart. But the next morning I woke up to a few missed calls and so did my partner, from the hospital. They left messages saying I needed to get to hospital in the next 10 minutes and to go straight to cardiology.

“Once we got there I had another scan and afterwards I felt like medical staff were dodging telling me what they found, but I pushed for it.

“I remember the nurse said: ‘How much do you want to know?” I said: ‘Everything – I’m about to be a mum. I have to know everything.’

“That’s when she broke the news to me that they’d found a mass the size of a grapefruit in my chest and I was being tested for cancer.

"Me and Joe looked at each other in complete shock, it was an awful day. I’ll never forget it.

“I will forever be grateful for my daughter as I believe they would never have found this mass if it wasn’t for her pushing everything in my body around. She has essentially saved my life.”

Now, she's undergoing six rounds of chemotherapy, every three weeks, for the next four months, with a CT scan booked to check if the mass has decreased in size.

After all her treatments are complete, the mum-of-one from Buckinghamshire will then have a PET scan to check if she's cancer free.

In the clip, she begins with brushing her hair, before showing how much is falling out and being left in the brush.

She then shaves Joe's head, until he is left completely bald, before Zoe passes him the clippers to do hers.

While they smile and chat away, her dark, brunette locks fall to the ground – with a few photos of the tender moment revealed at the end.

The video was captioned: “Today was shave day, my partner Joe wanted to join and support me, so we did his first.

“I could not be prouder of him and more grateful for wanting to support me in this.

“Funnily enough, I was more emotional cutting my hair than shaving it off.

“I was so ready to do this, watching it fall out every day is heartbreaking, I was ready for the cut!

“I do hate the fact I now look like a cancer patient & a piece of me is missing.

“But she’ll be back, better & healthier than ever.”

Users flocked to the comments to share their words of support.

River commented: “You’ve got this! We’re going to beat lymphoma!”

Ellie added: “So incredible, now get some red lip on and some hoops and never forget who you are!! Go mamma!!” [sic]

Leigh Ann said: “As Ru Paul says, when you have the face you don’t need the hair.”

“Beautiful, I admire your strength and courage!” commented Taylor-Jade.

“Echoing what everyone has said, you look beautiful, a true warrior Zoe,” said Lisa.

“Honestly u guys make me cry, the way he is so gentle shaving it and doing it properly, and to top it off u still look stunning zo!” said another person. [sic]

ENDS

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