Ali Bastian has shaved her head four months after her devastating cancer diagnosis.

The former Hollyoaks star, 42, who is best known for playing Becca Dean in the Channel 4 soap from 2001 to 2007, was told by doctors in June that she had stage two breast cancer.

Ali, who is having chemotherapy before she undergoes a mastectomy and radiotherapy, took to Instagram to post a heartbreaking video showing the moment she cut her hair off.

Set to The Greatest Showman ballad 'This is Me,' Ali explained how it was 'a small price to pay for the chance to be well again' before admitting she will be 'forever changed'.

With the help of her husband David O'Mahony who cut Ali's hair, the actress could be seen bravely smiling to the camera before shaving it off.

She then revealed her new look and in one candid shot, cuddled up to her youngest daughter, Isla, four.

'When you have breast cancer, every month is breast cancer awareness month' she wrote in the caption. 'Hair loss is just one aspect of all of this that we all wish wasn’t a side effect but I know it’s not forever and a small price to pay for the chance to be well again.'

She continued: 'The deeper I get into my treatment, the more I see this as an outward expression of how stripped back and raw it feels right now. Also sharing as this feels like part of my way… not ‘back’ to myself… as I will be forever changed… but forward towards my future …to show up as I am right now. In the truth of today.

She added: 'For all of the warrior women going through this. You are not alone. #breastcancerawareness'

Celebrities including Lizzie Cundy, Suzanne, Shaw, Sarah Dent, Alexandra Burke and Strictly Come Dancing's Karen Hauer and Ola Jordan took to the comment section to send their love. They wrote: 

'You are so amazing Ali. Sending you so much love and strength my lovely friend' and 'Always beautiful'.

'You are so beautiful So brave and a truly amazing human! Sending you so much love'.

'Sending you much love xxxxxx all my prayers are with you' and' 'Thinking of you Ali'. 

Alongside famous face, fans, survivors and others who are going through their own brave battle wrote words of support:

'So beautiful, Ali, with & without' and 'Shaving my head was one of the hardest things for me. You look amazing!! Keep going  you’ve got this!!'

'love to you Ali ❤️ brave and beautiful xxx'

'In awe of you Ali ❤️ So much strength in the s*******t of times!! Thinking of you and sending lots of love! Speak soon xx'

Ali - who now lives in Ireland with her husband and two young daughters told OK!: 'It was a total shock. I have mornings when I wake up and I've forgotten… and then suddenly I remember. I'm still trying to process it.'

Ali was breastfeeding daughter Isabella, 19 months - her youngest child with husband David O'Mahony - when she came across a lump.

The mother-of-two - who also raises Isla, four, with her husband - shared: 'I hadn't been breastfeeding Izzy at night but then David flew back to London for work and suddenly she was feeding like crazy. I was thinking, 'Maybe she's having a growth spurt or something.'

'And because of that, my boobs felt sore. The next morning, I woke up and thought, 'Ouch, this really hurts.' And that's when I felt a lump.' 

Ali assumed she had a 'blocked duct' and was given a course of antibiotics, but it wasn't clearing up, so on her doctor's advice, she headed to a breast clinic.

She continued: 'It was a bank holiday in Ireland, so I went straight to the emergency doctor.

'It really seemed like I had mastitis, especially as I had been night-weaning Izzy before that. We thought I probably had a blocked duct. The doctor gave me antibiotics and said that if it didn't clear up in a few days I should go to the breast clinic.

'But it wasn't clearing up and the more I felt it, the more it felt like this wasn't just a blocked duct. I went to my GP and I said, 'Actually, can I go to the clinic now?' and she was very supportive of that.' 

Ali received the shock news via telephone but was reassured after being told they have 'intent to cure' her.

She is set to undergo a single mastectomy and is still waiting to hear if doing double is a good idea as a 'preventative measure'. 

Breast cancer is one of the most common cancers in the world and affects more than two MILLION women a year

Breast cancer is one of the most common cancers in the world. Each year in the UK there are more than 55,000 new cases, and the disease claims the lives of 11,500 women. In the US, it strikes 266,000 each year and kills 40,000. But what causes it and how can it be treated?

What is breast cancer?

It comes from a cancerous cell which develops in the lining of a duct or lobule in one of the breasts.

When the breast cancer has spread into surrounding tissue it is called 'invasive'. Some people are diagnosed with 'carcinoma in situ', where no cancer cells have grown beyond the duct or lobule.

Most cases develop in those over the age of 50 but younger women are sometimes affected. Breast cancer can develop in men, though this is rare.

Staging indicates how big the cancer is and whether it has spread. Stage 1 is the earliest stage and stage 4 means the cancer has spread to another part of the body.

The cancerous cells are graded from low, which means a slow growth, to high, which is fast-growing. High-grade cancers are more likely to come back after they have first been treated.

What causes breast cancer?

A cancerous tumour starts from one abnormal cell. The exact reason why a cell becomes cancerous is unclear. It is thought that something damages or alters certain genes in the cell. This makes the cell abnormal and multiply 'out of control'.

Although breast cancer can develop for no apparent reason, there are some risk factors that can increase the chance, such as genetics.

What are the symptoms of breast cancer?

The usual first symptom is a painless lump in the breast, although most are not cancerous and are fluid filled cysts, which are benign. 

The first place that breast cancer usually spreads to is the lymph nodes in the armpit. If this occurs you will develop a swelling or lump in an armpit.

How is breast cancer diagnosed?

• Initial assessment: A doctor examines the breasts and armpits. They may do tests such as a mammography, a special x-ray of the breast tissue which can indicate the possibility of tumours.
• Biopsy: A biopsy is when a small sample of tissue is removed from a part of the body. The sample is then examined under a microscope to look for abnormal cells. The sample can confirm or rule out cancer.

If you are confirmed to have breast cancer, further tests may be needed to assess if it has spread. For example, blood tests, an ultrasound scan of the liver or a chest X-ray.

How is breast cancer treated?

Treatment options which may be considered include surgery, chemotherapy, radiotherapy and hormone treatment. Often a combination of two or more of these treatments are used.

• Surgery: Breast-conserving surgery or the removal of the affected breast depending on the size of the tumour.
• Radiotherapy: A treatment which uses high energy beams of radiation focused on cancerous tissue. This kills cancer cells, or stops them from multiplying. It is mainly used in addition to surgery.
• Chemotherapy: A treatment of cancer by using anti-cancer drugs which kill cancer cells, or stop them from multiplying.
• Hormone treatments: Some types of breast cancer are affected by the 'female' hormone oestrogen, which can stimulate the cancer cells to divide and multiply. Treatments which reduce the level of these hormones, or prevent them from working, are commonly used in people with breast cancer.

How successful is treatment?

The outlook is best in those who are diagnosed when the cancer is still small, and has not spread. Surgical removal of a tumour in an early stage may then give a good chance of cure.

The routine mammography offered to women between the ages of 50 and 71 means more breast cancers are being diagnosed and treated at an early stage.

For more information visit breastcancernow.org or call its free helpline on 0808 800 6000