Most families have aspirations of starting a new school year organized and prepared for academic

Professional dancer Amy Dowden has revealed that she has been diagnosed with breast cancer. The Strictly Come Dancing star, 32, said she received the diagnosis “last week” and described it as “another hurdle” in her life. Speaking to Hello!magazine, Dowden said: “I’ve been through quite a lot in my life and this is another hurdle. “But if I’m positive and strong, I’ve got a really good chance of getting back out on the dance floor as soon as possible.” Dowden also suffers from Crohn’s disease, a lifelong condition where parts of the digestive system become inflamed. She campaigns for awareness around Crohn’s and released a BBC documentary Strictly Amy: Crohn’s and Me about living with the disease in 2020. She pointed towards her work around raising awareness of Crohn’s and said she hopes to “do the same” with breast cancer. “If I can try to turn this negative into a positive, it’s going to help me get through this,” she added. The dancer, who married her partner Ben Jones in South Wales last July, continued: “You just don’t ever think it’s going to happen to you. I hadn’t thought it was possible to get breast cancer at my age.” She revealed that her mother has also had breast cancer in the past, but she was diagnosed in her fifties. According to Cancer Research UK, there are around 55,900 new breast cancer cases in the country every year, with around 5,000 women under the age of 45 diagnosed. Around eight in 10 (80.6 per cent) of women in England who are diagnosed between the ages of 15 and 44 survive breast cancer for 10 years or more, data from the organisation shows. Dowden said she only began making a “conscious effort” to check her breasts for signs of cancer after taking part in CoppaTrek! With Gi, a fundraising walk led by blogger and podcaster Giovanna Fletcher for breast health charity CoppaFeel! She credited the charity with “potentially [saving] my life”, adding: “I don’t know how long this lump could have been there before I would have noticed and done something about it.” The dancer added that she hoped speaking about her diagnosis “might end up saving some other people’s lives” if she prompts them to check their breasts. She first found a “hard lump” in her right breast in April, a day before she and Ben were due to fly to the Maldives for a delayed honeymoon. Dowden said she was “in shock” and initially thought the lump could have been “period-related” or something else, but decided to “keep an eye on it”. After returning from holiday, Dowden said she realised the lump “felt so much bigger” while preparing to do a dance show with her husband and decided it was time to see her GP. She was sent for an emergency referral. Dowden’s doctors believe the cancer was discovered early, but she is still awaiting more information before getting a full treatment plan, which “will definitely include surgery”, she said. “I don’t know what stage the cancer is yet, until I have an MRI scan and a biopsy on a second lump they have found in the same breast,” she explained. “Once they’ve got that, they can give me a full prognosis.” Posting on Instagram after her interview was published this morning (Wednesday 24 May), Dowden told her followers: “Hey all, I’ve got some news that isn’t easy to share. I’ve recently been diagnosed with breast cancer but I’m determined to get back on that dance floor before you know it. Welsh love Amy.” Read More Breast cancer symptoms you should look out for Start mammograms at 40, not 50, a US health panel recommends Angelina Jolie shares tribute to late mum and urges women with family cancer history to get checked

At least once a week, the writers and editors on Refinery29's Life team get into a long Slack conversation about some cool new item that's been absolutely saving or changing or elevating our lives. So we decided to share the wealth, and highlight some of our favorite products each month.

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A new clip from Mike Flanagan's The Fall of the House of Usher introduces us

TikTok has become a hub for the latest fashion cores and aesthetics. While the styles tend to have short lives, the soft girl aesthetic is here for fall. Though the hyper-feminine, pastel-hued look first appeared last autumn and disappeared to allow mermaidcore to take the stage, it’s made it’s stealthy return. And with #softgirlaesthetic raking over 241.1 million views on TikTok, its reign is strong. Fashion enthusiasts online are scrambling to hop on the bandwagon and curate their own take on the dainty look.

Gimena Páez could barely pay her bills

It's official: The House of Usher has fallen at last. The finale of Mike Flanagan's

One year after the US Supreme Court revoked a constitutional right to abortion care, President Joe Biden warned Americans about Republican plans for a national ban and threats to contraception and birth control. The Supreme Court’s conservative majority decision to overturn Roe v Wade triggered a wave of anti-abortion laws across the US. More than a dozen states, mostly in the South, have effectively outlawed most or all abortions with few, if any, exceptions. Women’s March organisers and abortion rights advocacy groups rallied thousands of Americans in dozens of demonstrations held in cities across the US, hoping to build political momentum to combat anti-abortion candidates and secure federal protections for abortion care in 2024. Demonstrators in Washington DC marched to the Supreme Court. Marches for abortion rights have also joined Pride parades and Pride events, linking the fight for reproductive healthcare as part of a broader threat to civil liberties. “Extreme and dangerous abortion bans” across the US “put the health and lives of women in jeopardy, force women to travel hundreds of miles for care, and threaten to criminalize doctors for providing the health care that their patients need and that they are trained to provide,” Mr Biden said in a statement on Saturday. State bans are “just the beginning,” he added. In a speech to abortion rights’ advocates in North Carolina on Saturday, Vice President Kamala Harris said anti-abortion laws have sparked a healthcare crisis and “chaos, confusion and fear” among providers and pregnant patients – an agenda that “extremist” anti-abortion lawmakers plan to take national, she said. After the decision in Dobbs v Jackson Women’s Health Organization last year, Republicans have said that the Supreme Court ruling merely left abortion restrictions up to states. But anti-abortion lawmakers, and candidates for the 2024 Republican presidential nomination, are pushing for a national ban that would also strike down state laws that protect and expand abortion access. Congressional Republicans have passed several anti-abortion measures with national implications, and third-ranking House Republican Elise Stefanik has signalled that the party is preparing to introduce a ban on abortion at 15 weeks of pregnancy. Candidates vying for the Republican nomination for president in 2024 are mulling their proposals for national bans. Former vice president Mike Pence and South Carolina Senator Tim Scott have pledged support for a 15-week ban. Florida Governor Ron DeSantis has outlawed abortion in his state at six weeks of pregnancy, before many women know they are pregnant. Donald Trump, who has suggested that his main rival went too far with a six-week ban, also blamed Republicans’ poor outcomes in 2022 midterm elections on their anti-abortion platforms. In moves over the last year that have tested the limits of his presidency, Mr Biden issued a series of executive actions and memorandums to federal agencies to affirm access to abortion drugs and reproductive healthcare. The US Department of Justice also joined state and federal legal challenges to protect abortion access. Mr Biden’s latest order directs federal agencies to find ways to ensure and expand access to birth control. Congressional Republicans have refused to back Democratic bills that would codify the right to contraception. In Nevada, the state’s Republican governor, Joe Lombardo, recently vetoed legislation that would guarantee a right to contraception access, a move that abortion rights advocates fear is a sign of similar actions to come. Republican officials are also supporting the legal battle from anti-abortion activists to revoke the federal government’s approval of a widely-used abortion drug. That case is expected to land before the Supreme Court, where justices could deliver yet another ruling with massive consequences for abortion care. “Congressional Republicans want to ban abortion nationwide, but go beyond that, by taking FDA-approved medication for terminating a pregnancy, off the market, and make it harder to obtain contraception,” Mr Biden said in his statement. “Their agenda is extreme, dangerous, and out-of-step with the vast majority of Americans.” More than 60 per cent of Americans disagree with the decision in Dobbs, according to polling from NBC News. That figure includes nearly 80 per cent of women aged 18-49; two-thirds of women who live in the suburbs; 60 per cent of independent voters; and one-third of all Republican voters. A record 69 per cent of Americans believe abortion should be legal within the first three months of pregnancy, according to a recent Gallup poll, marking an increase of at least 2 per cent in the last year. More than half of Americans believe abortion is morally acceptable – a 10 per cent increase since 2001. A separate poll from USA Today/Suffolk University found that one in four Americans say states’ efforts to restrict abortion access have made them more supportive of abortion rights. The Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe v Wade has also alarmed other civil rights groups who fear the conservative court could take aim at fundamental rights to privacy and constitutional rights to due process and equal protection under the law. In his concurring opinion, conservative Justice Clarence Thomas suggested that the court should “revisit” landmark cases involving the right to contraception, same-sex relationships and marriage equality. In remarks to abortion rights advocates on 23 June, Mr Biden said the Dobbs decision “risks the broader rights of privacy for everyone”. “That’s because the fundamental right to privacy, which Roe recognized, has served as a basis for so many other rights that are ingrained in the fabric of our country: the right to make the best decisions for your health, the right to use birth control,” Mr Biden added. “Did you ever think we’d be arguing about that?” He singled out the opinion from Justice Thomas. “These guys are serious, man. I said it when the decision came out, and people looked at me like I was exaggerating. But they’re not stopping here,” Mr Biden said. “Make no mistake, this election is about freedom on the ballot once again.” The president also pointed to victories for abortion rights in Kansas, Kentucky and Michigan in the wake of the Dobbs ruling. “I said at the time that I didn’t think the Court – or, for that matter, the Republican Party, who for decades have pushed their extreme agenda – have a clue about the power of women in America,” Mr Biden said in his remarks. “I said they were about to find out.” Read More One year after Roe v Wade fell, anti-abortion laws threaten millions. The battle for access is far from over The religious right used to be uneasy about Trump – but his dominance is now complete Mike Pence calls for 15-week abortion ban on eve of anniversary of Roe being overturned Anti-abortion laws harm patients facing dangerous and life-threatening complications, report finds Where abortion laws stand in every state a year after the Supreme Court overturned Roe Evangelical leader hopes conference is 'testosterone booster shot' for anti-abortion 2024 candidates

Connections is the latest New York Times word game that's captured the public's attention. The

When the Dutch Grand Prix returned to the Formula 1 calendar in 2021 – after a 36-year absence – organisers could frankly not have foreseen a future more favourable. A Dutch race reincarnated by-and-large due to a Dutch hero, timed exquisitely for his era of ultra-domination. To the extent that, now, anything other than a Max Verstappen triumph come Sunday would be as big a shock as Formula 1 has seen all season. Verstappen-mania in the Netherlands has long been at fever pitch, with the ‘Orange Army’ previously travelling across Europe to support the man born in Belgium but with Holland in his heart. But now Zandvoort, on the coast of the North Sea, sees thousands make the journey from Amsterdam and beyond to revel and rave in this electro-music, orange-clad razzmatazz amid the sand dunes. Verstappen, coasting to a third-straight F1 championship title this season with a 125-point lead with 10 races remaining, is on track to break more ground. Win on Sunday and he will equal Sebastian Vettel’s record of nine consecutive victories from 10 years ago, also set while at Red Bull. On Friday, fresh from a four-week break, he set down an ominous marker by going fastest in first practice – and only marginally sniffed out of first spot in practice two by his friend Lando Norris, a session delayed by a bizarre double-crash involving Oscar Piastri and Daniel Ricciardo. Formula 1’s return in the Netherlands this weekend feels all the more appropriate given the sheer levels Verstappen is reaching this season. The 25-year-old is on track to reach a half-century knock of victories by the time the year is out – he is currently on 45 with 10 to go – and powered by a Red Bull which is the standout car this year, nothing has stopped his ascent to near-perfection. Not even his team-mate Sergio Perez, armed with the same machinery, has proved a match for Verstappen. Since Azerbaijan in April, Verstappen has won eight races on the trot – 10 if you include sprints – and has been repeatedly unfazed on the occasions he has not started on pole, simply picking off his rivals with supreme ease when needed. Saturdays do offer the chasing pack a glimmer of hope, though. If there is any weakness in this Verstappen-Red Bull partnership, it is qualifying. Both Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton have claimed pole position this season, with Fernando Alonso a shave away in Monaco too. For Leclerc though, speaking to the media on Thursday, it mattered not an an iota. In fact, the pessimism made for a grim forecast for all non-Verstappen fans out there: two-and-a-half years of the current trajectory continuing. “They [Red Bull] have a really big margin,” the Ferrari driver said. “It’s going to be very, very difficult to catch them before the change of regulations [in 2026].” Lewis Hamilton was a tad more measured, but remained far from optimistic: “The fact is Red Bull are ahead and they have most likely started development on next year’s car a month before anybody else. It is very, very possible that Charles could be right.” Beyond the expectancy, even inevitability now, of a Verstappen victory on Sunday, there are always potential avenues for something different. Rain is forecast, intermittently, over the next two days which could bring some unpredictability. The last two races in Zandvoort have been close-run affairs, though ultimately Verstappen ended up on top of the podium. A non-Red Bull pole-sitter would certainly make at least the early stages intriguing. But the man who is on track to be one of the Netherlands’ biggest sporting stars ever does not feel any burden. “It doesn’t bring a weight on my shoulders of extra pressure,” he said on Thursday. “"It is just amazing to be here, see all of the fans and drive such an incredible track. “Hopefully it [the race] will continue for a while,” A third championship is simply a matter of when for Verstappen and Red Bull. Mercedes, Ferrari, McLaren and Aston Martin are in their own battle for second-place. The more pertinent question now, for the history-books, is can anybody stop them? And can they really complete an unprecedented perfect season? Read More Oscar Piastri and Daniel Ricciardo crash in Dutch Grand Prix practice Lewis Hamilton gives blunt response to Felipe Massa’s legal action over 2008 F1 title Charles Leclerc gives gloomy prediction on how quick Ferrari will catch Red Bull Oscar Piastri and Daniel Ricciardo crash in Dutch Grand Prix practice F1 Dutch Grand Prix: When is practice on Friday in Zandvoort? F1 Dutch Grand Prix LIVE: Practice updates and times as Formula 1 returns

The Federal Trade Commission is suing Amazon for what it calls a years-long effort to enroll consumers without consent into its Prime program and making it difficult for them to cancel their subscriptions