Julia Bradbury Reveals the Strict Health Habits She Follows to “Stay Alive for as Long as Possible” After Breast Cancer Diagnosis at 51

Five years after being diagnosed with breast cancer, Julia Bradbury has made dramatic changes to her lifestyle, vowing to live “for as long as possible.”

The Countryfile presenter’s world was turned upside down at the age of 51 when doctors discovered a 6 cm tumor in her left breast.

“I was terrified and heartbroken—it was an incredibly emotional time,” Julia shared in an interview with The Times. “It must have been devastating for my family too.”

In the midst of the turmoil, Julia underwent a mastectomy to remove the tumor, which set her on a path of self-improvement. While chemotherapy wasn’t needed, the recovery process spurred her to overhaul her diet completely—cutting out meat and sugar.

“I thought, I need to get stronger for this,” Julia recalled. “I knew I had to move and walk as soon as possible after surgery to heal.”

Though she’s now slowly incorporating meat back into her diet, Julia opts for healthier, organic options over the fast food she once relied on while constantly on the go filming.

“I used to eat junk food all the time—cheap sandwiches and bags of sweets. I was consuming sugar all day long, but being naturally slim, I never noticed the warning signs like others might,” she explained.

In addition to dietary changes, Julia’s new daily routine includes regular exercise, outdoor walks, and a focus on maintaining a consistent sleep schedule. Her ultimate goal? Staying fit and being a constant presence in the lives of her three children—Zephyr, 14, and 11-year-old twins Xanthe and Zena.

Looking back, Julia admits that had she known what she knows now, she would have taken a more considered approach to her health much earlier in life.

Now, she’s also an advocate for making polygenic risk score (PRS) and SNP testing available on the NHS. Julia took her own PRS test, which she calls a “lifesaver” that empowered her to understand her personal risk of breast cancer.

“When I was diagnosed, it changed my life,” she shared on Instagram. “But it also made me ask why it happened and what I could do to reduce the risk of it coming back. That’s why I took the PRS test with Professor Gareth Evans at the Manchester Biomedical Research Centre.”

The test analyzes variations in her DNA to assess the likelihood of developing—or in Julia’s case, recurring—breast cancer. It’s a groundbreaking tool that she believes could help countless women take proactive steps in managing their health.