New job thoughts
I was diagnosed with TNBC in 2024 and finished all active treatment in Dec 2025. I’m cancer-free now and 37F.
I’m a lawyer at a good firm in the UK and I took the whole 2024 off for medical reasons (my firm still paid my salary under the income protection scheme and I received great private healthcare through work). In 2025 I returned to work but everyone knew of my situation and didn’t give me any interesting work. My career ambition was pretty much dead but I was still getting paid fairly well and received great private healthcare benefits so didn’t have much to complain about. I have always been very driven (first generation immigrant) and completed an additional qualification during this time.
Now I come to my dilemma. In 2026 I was given a very demanding client and have been working exclusively with them 100% of my time. The client obviously doesn’t know anything about my health history. The client has been giving me glorious feedback and loved me so much that they have recently offered me a job. The pay is much better, the work is exciting and there is talk of career progression. I feel like I’m back to normal again. However, it’s an American company and I feel that they would disregard me the very second I feel sick again. I’m so drawn to this opportunity because I haven’t felt so alive, driven and NORMAL for 2 years. I’m flattered that my wits survived chemo and they want me for the job so much.
But I feel that I should stay where I am and wait. My recurrence could happen literally next year and I would regret moving jobs so much. At the same time, I feel so broken when I understand that my future health concerns may mean that my career is over. Also, I’m planning to try to get pregnant at the end of this year but obviously there is no guarantee that I succeed.
My husband has always been so supportive of my career and my ambition that he’s trying to convince me to take the job but I’m so paralysed.
What should I do?