Tina Knowles "can't even explain how supportive" her children were following her cancer diagnosis

She told The Guardian: "It was really hard, really challenging.

"Something that I thought was going to be easy turned into something pretty traumatic, but I am doing so good now, and I am just so grateful and blessed that I am healthy. It could have been way worse.

"My kids were....I can't even explain how supportive they were.

"This was a seven-day-a-week thing, and I felt, with them by my side, I could get through anything - and I did,."

The fashion designer also admitted that her confidence has actually "improved" since her ordeal and that she has been trying to live life to the full since she celebrated her 60th birthday more than a decade ago anyway.

She said: "My confidence is better, actually. I decided that my silver lining of all of this would be a breast reduction, and, let me tell you, I wore a dress to the Billboard awards that I could never have dreamed of wearing before.

"So that part, for me, has been awesome.

"I had the view that I would live each day as fully as I possibly can, and just live out loud, which doesn't mean I'm loud or boisterous or anything. It just means that I am a priority, and I don't feel bad about the good things that I've accomplished. I feel proud, I feel happy, I feel fulfilled.."

Tina underwent surgery to remove the tumour and had a breast reduction at the same time and she is now doing well.

She told People: "I'm doing great. Cancer-free and incredibly blessed that God allowed me to find it early.

"I'm healthier, eating better, I lost weight."

Tina hopes to serve as an inspiration to other women, as well as encouraging them to have regular breast screenings when invited.

She said: "I didn't know that there was a stage 0. I could have caught this at stage 0 if I had not missed my mammogram.

"I want to show people you can go through that and still be fly. I want to give people hope. What scares me now is not making the best of every day that I have left in this life."