Each year more than 14 million people are diagnosed with cancer. Among them are the 11,000 women in the UK who are told that they have breast cancer.

Yet, despite those startling figures, speaking about the reality of cancer remains a taboo - even more so when the area of the body is so intimate and fraught with meaning.

Few people have witnessed the stark reality of dealing with cancer like oncology nurse Alison Bailey, who has been working as specialist in the disease for almost 25 years.

To mark Breast Cancer Awareness Month, Bailey has compiled the truths and tips that she has learned from breast cancer patients during her decades of service into a book entitled One Step at a Time. She hope it will offer comfort and reassurance to women day-to-day, at all stages of their diagnosis.

Here are some of the most candid anonymous accounts featured in that book.

Hot flushes and mouth ulcers

“The first dose of chemotherapy was the worst – I felt so tired and nauseous after it. The hot flushes were bad and used to happen a lot at night. I had a lot of mouth ulcers and my teeth gave me a lot of trouble. My ankles were always really sore on waking but got better throughout the day.”

“I couldn’t sleep for four days”

“I couldn’t keep anything down [during chemotherapy], not even water. I absolutely hated the effects of the steroids which made me exhausted and hyper at the same time. I couldn’t sleep whilst on steroids for four days around each treatment.”

Migraines and orange skin

“During chemotherapy, my usual pattern was that a few hours after I would get a migraine-type headache and feel completely out of it. This would be a bit better the next day, but then I would have hot flushes and go orange (I was allergic!).”

13 ways to help prevent cancer Show all 13 1 /13 13 ways to help prevent cancer 13 ways to help prevent cancer Stopping smoking. This notoriously difficult habit to break sees tar build-up in the lungs and DNA alteration and causes 15,558 cancer deaths a year 13 ways to help prevent cancer Avoiding the sun, and the melanoma that comes with overexposure to harmful UV rays, could help conscientious shade-lovers dodge being one of the 7,220 people who die from it 13 ways to help prevent cancer A diet that is low in red meat can help to prevent bowel cancer, according to the research - with 30 grams a day recommended for men, and 25 a day recommended for women 13 ways to help prevent cancer Foods high in fibre, meanwhile, can further make for healthier bowels. Processed foods in developed countries appear to be causing higher rates of colon cancer than diets in continents such as Africa, which have high bean and pulse intakes 13 ways to help prevent cancer Two servings of fruit and three servings of vegetables a day were given as the magic number for good diet in the research. Overall, diet causes only slightly fewer cancer deaths than sun exposure in Australia, at 7,000 a year 13 ways to help prevent cancer Obesity and being overweight, linked to poor diet and lack of exercise, causes 3,917 deaths by cancer a year on its own Getty 13 ways to help prevent cancer Dying of a cancer caused by infection also comes in highly, linked to 3,421 cancer deaths a year. Infections such as human papilloma virus - which can cause cervical cancer in women - and hepatitis - can be prevented by vaccinations and having regular check-ups 13 ways to help prevent cancer Cutting back on drinks could reduce the risk of cancers caused by alcohol - such as liver cancer, bowel cancer, breast cancer and mouth cancer - that are leading to 3,208 deaths a year 2014 Getty Images 13 ways to help prevent cancer Sitting around and not getting the heart pumping - less than one hour's exercise a day - is directly leading to about 1,800 people having lower immune functions and higher hormone levels, among other factors, that cause cancers 2011 Getty Images 13 ways to help prevent cancer Hormone replacement therapy, which is used to relieve symptoms of the menopause in women, caused 539 deaths from (mainly breast) cancer in Australia last year. It did, however, prevent 52 cases of colorectal cancers 2003 Getty Images 13 ways to help prevent cancer Insufficient breastfeeding, bizarrely, makes the top 10. Breastfeeding for 12 months could prevent 235 cancer cases a year, said the research AFP/Getty Images 13 ways to help prevent cancer Oral contraceptives, like the Pill, caused about 105 breast cancers and 52 cervical cancers - but it also prevented about 1,440 ovarian and uterine (womb) cases of cancer last year 2006 Getty Images 13 ways to help prevent cancer Taking aspirin also prevented 232 cases in the Queensland research of colorectal and oesophagal cancers - but as it can also cause strokes, is not yet recommended as a formal treatment against the risk of cancer

Metallic mouth and burning feet

“With my second type of chemo, I felt worse. It would start a few days in, and some symptoms a week in – metallic mouth, burning mouth, sore nails and balls of feet. That would go on for a week.”

“Wine wasn't the same”

“A lifetime avid reader, I find I cannot concentrate on this currently. Wine is not as delicious as before, (but) Cinzano Bianco vermouth tastes delicious; I found that I prefer sweet things.”

Tender hair

“Losing my hair was for me more traumatic than being bald. As my hair was falling out, the hair follicles were really tender which surprised me. The veins in my arm gradually got more and more tender and getting the needle in was the worst bit.

Alison Bailey has worked as a cancer nurse for over two decades

"I developed an aversion to my favourite food"

“Perhaps avoid favourite foods at chemo – I developed an aversion to some of them. Cold food was tastier than hot. Water can taste disgusting post-FEC. Stock up with squash, juice and smoothies.”

"I couldn't get away from cancer in the mirror"

I found losing my eyelashes much more upsetting than my hair. I could disguise my lack of hair with a pretty scarf but there was no getting away from the ‘cancer’ image in the mirror.

Sea swimming made me feel normal

“Swimming in the sea, if you are able, made me feel revitalised and energised, and well and healthy and all things good. Like a normal person, not a chemotherapy patient at all."