SLIMMING guru Rosemary Conley has nothing but praise for super-slimmer Enid Atkinson from Leigh.

"It is one of the most moving and inspirational stories I've read," she stated.

"She was just 37 when she was told she had breast cancer.

"She endured a mastectomy, and during weeks of gruelling chemotherapy and radiotherapy she turned to food for comfort until her weight was a dangerously high 20st 7lb.

"But she fought her illness and she conquered it -- and then she took on her weight problem and beat that too!"

Now, Enid has won national acclaim in Diet and Fitness magazine. Here, she tells her story.

"WHEN I was diagnosed with breast cancer in summer 1997, it was as if my world had come to a standstill," said Enid.

"I remember sitting in the breast surgeon's consulting room at the Hope Hospital in Salford when I'd just been told the news.

"I felt numb. Frozen inside. The week after that I was lying in the Hope awaiting a mastectomy."

As well as having to come to terms with the loss of part of her body, Enid had to undergo an intensive course of chemotherapy, as the cancer had spread to her lymph nodes, 28 of which had to be removed.

"After each chemo session, I'd reward myself with a treat, so I'd have endless meals of fish and chips, cakes, biscuits, crisps, chocolate, warm bread dripping with butter... whatever I fancied really."

When the chemotherapy came to an end, Enid had to endure 15 sessions of radiotherapy.

"After that I was totally exhausted," she said.

"I was comfort eating and knew I was piling on the pounds, but I seemed unable to do anything about it.

"I was depressed and didn't like myself.

"I had no energy and could barely even go for a walk.

"When I did venture out, I'd be breathless and my inner thighs would be chapped from where they rubbed together.

"When my treatment had finished, my husband, John, and I took a holiday, railing it across Canada.

"We took a trip in a sea-plane, but I was so heavy I had to sit in a certain place so the craft wouldn't be unbalanced when it landed.

"The seat belt wouldn't fit either, and I had to be given an extension, which was really embarrassing.

Nightmare

"The night flight back to the UK was a nightmare, too, as I was literally wedged into the seat and couldn't move."

Back home, Enid still did not address her weight problem.

"I was getting bigger and bigger. The most 'exercise' I took was a drive in the car.

"John started to become really anxious about my weight. He never said anything horrible about the way I looked, but he was concerned about the effect of my weight on my health -- especially the strain I was putting on my heart, which was already weakened from the chemotherapy."

Enid's breast surgeon also voiced concern. But it was not until her GP mentioned that there were people out there who could help Enid lose weight and become healthier, that she started to take notice.

"Apparently I was eligible to be seen by a health and fitness expert who'd advise me on diet and exercise.

"It was this person who first suggested the Rosemary Conley classes to me. She said they would be perfect for me, as I'd be given sensible dietary advice, educated on how to eat properly and put through an exercise class.

"I decided I had to lose some weight before I went. I bought a copy of Rosemary's Hip and Thigh Diet.

"Because I was so big, the weight dropped off easily and within a few weeks I'd lost a stone and felt ready to join my nearest class in Leigh."

Enid soon found that she was regarding her weekly class as more of a pleasure than a chore.

Her weight loss was astounding, she was losing, on average, five or six pounds a week.

Over the next 18 months, Enid continued to lose weight but more gradually.

When she reached just under 10 and a half stone in May this year, she decided she would not lose any more weight.

"I felt good about myself and my breast surgeon said that I shouldn't go any lower.

"When I look in the mirror now, I hardly recognise myself.

"I have three wardrobes full of size 12 clothes which I can now easily fit into.

"John and I have joined our local gym and I really enjoy going there three or four times a week.

"Having been so ill, I'm proud of my body and want to be as healthy as possible. I was overweight before I discovered I had cancer and I'd had a problem since being a child because I'd stuff myself with he wrong foods -- pies and pasties are very big here in the North-west.

"I just want to let other women know that there is something you can do for yourself if you're diagnosed with a serious illness and have a weight problem.

"I've managed, hopefully, to conquer them both." 'I just want to let other women know that there is something you can do for yourself if you're diagnosed with a serious illness and have a weight problem'

PIC 1 AFTER: Enid jumps for joy having lost half her bodyweight

PIC 2 BEFORE: Smile hides trauma of fighting cancer and ballooning to 20st 7lbs