Amy Dowden marked her 36th birthday yesterday with an emotional social media post.
The Strictly Come Dancing professional shared a video on Instagram showing her playfully holding a lit birthday candle in her mouth before placing it on her cake.
“Another birthday, and I’ll always say that every birthday is a privilege,” she wrote.
“Feeling so grateful after the most beautiful weekend spent with my loved ones, making memories and feeling very lucky to be surrounded by so much love.”
Amy Dowden marked her 36th birthday with an emotional message on social media
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GETTY
Ms Dowden spent her actual birthday in Strictly rehearsals ahead of the BBC show’s return next month.
“Off to spend my birthday doing what I love most, dancing with my Strictly family! Couldn’t think of a better way to celebrate,” she added, also wishing her twin sister a happy birthday.
Her cancer journey began in May 2023 when she discovered a lump the day before she and husband Benjamin Jones were due to depart on their honeymoon.
The diagnosis led to a mastectomy and chemotherapy treatment, which also triggered an early menopause as her cancer was hormone-fed.
The Welsh dancer regularly shares her own cancer battle updates
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INSTAGRAM/AMY DOWDENBy February 2024, doctors confirmed there was “no evidence of disease.”
She has since undergone a second mastectomy, though she stressed at the time that it was not in response to a new cancer diagnosis.
Fellow Strictly stars flooded Ms Dowden’s post with birthday wishes.
Dianne Buswell penned: “Happy Birthday Miss Dowden. See you soon!”
Nancy Xu and Michelle Tsiakkas said: “Happy birthday Amy!”
Gorka Marquez added: “HAPPY BIRTHDAY!”
Alexis Warr wrote: “Happy Birthday beautiful.”
Former It Takes Two presenter Fleur East also wished the Welsh dancer a Happy Birthday.
In a post from Ibiza in June, Ms Dowden reflected: “My perspective on life has completely changed. I live each day to the fullest, with so much gratitude for the little things I once took for granted.”
Despite her remarkable recovery, the dancer recently revealed she came close to leaving the BBC show permanently.
She told the Mirror last week that she had been ready to retire from dancing altogether.
“I’d been pulled out of Strictly, and I was ready to hang up my dancing shoes, but it was Carlos and Ben, my husband, who gave me that tough love, that motivation to make sure I didn’t,” she said.
The Strictly Come Dancing professional described every birthday as a ‘privilege’
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GETTY“My husband and Carlos were the ones who got me my confidence back, ensured I could do it, made sure that cancer didn’t take my dancing away from me along with everything else,” she said.
Ms Dowden first joined the BBC programme in 2017, when she was paired with comedian Brian Conley.
A four-time British national finalist who became a British national champion, she ranks among the UK’s top Ballroom and Latin dancers.
The Welsh dancer is preparing to return for her 10th series as a Strictly professional
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BBCHer return to competition in 2024 alongside JB Gill was cut short by injury.
Last year she was partnered with The Apprentice star Thomas Skinner, but they were eliminated first after a dance-off against Chris Robshaw and Nadia Bychkova.
The upcoming series will be her 10th as a professional, and she has said she feels more prepared than ever.