Salon owners share their journey of strength and survival

When Justyna and Agnieszka opened their beauty salon in Omagh, they had no idea it would mark the beginning of an unimaginably difficult time.

Within weeks, both women were diagnosed with cancer.

Justyna Samociuk, 39, has lived in Omagh for nearly 20 years with her partner and three children.

After meeting Agnieszka Zywot as a client, the two became close friends, and today they co-run Prime Aesthetics on Market Street.

Over the years, they’ve built a successful business, winning numerous awards for their aesthetic work, with a bond strengthened by unwavering support for one another.

Their close-knit friendship was exemplified during the Covid period when Agnieszka needed to fly to Poland for cancer surgery. Justyna was by her side.

“A couple of months after we opened our salon, Agnes’s health began to decline,” Justyna told the Ulster Herald.

“We had to go to Poland because all hospitals were closed here; so I went to support her through her treatment for suspected cervical cancer. I left everything – our salon, my home, and my children.”

Having experienced her own thyroid issues, Justyna decided to get her health checked too, at Agnieszka’s urging.

“I found a gynaecologist and they did some scans for me – breasts, reproductive organs and thyroid,” Justyna explained.

“I told them that I hadn’t been feeling well. You know your own body and I knew something didn’t feel right.”

The doctor identified a small lump on Justyna’s thyroid.

“She told me then that she wanted to send me for a biopsy – just in case – to make sure everything was okay.”

After celebrating Agnieszka’s successful operation, the two returned home. But soon after, Justyna received a devastating diagnosis: She had advanced thyroid cancer.

“I remember we opened the champagne, we were celebrating for Agnes and everything was happy,” said Justyna.

“However, once the doctor gave me a code to open an email containing the result of my biopsy, I knew it was bad.

“I called for Agnes to come to me and told her that I had cancer and it was at a late stage.”

With hospital operations on hold in Ireland, Justyna faced a lengthy wait for treatment until Agnieszka urged her not to delay any longer.

Justyna quickly arranged to fly back Poland to receive surgery.

“The doctor told me that if I’d waited two more weeks, I’d be dead,” she added.

During surgery, doctors found cancer in Justyna’s lymph nodes and removed six.

She returned to Omagh on Christmas Eve, just as more Covid restrictions began. In the following months, Justyna underwent radiotherapy in Belfast.

“I couldn’t have contact with anyone, including my own children, for a week – it wasn’t safe,” Justyna explained.

Explaining the process of coming to terms with life after cancer, she added that returning to normal was challenging.

“People think if you look good, you must feel good,” Justyna said.

“I went back to work quickly; I had to keep the salon going. People didn’t believe I’d had cancer because I looked ‘normal’. But we don’t know what people are going through privately.

“After radiotherapy treatment, I was not back to normal. My skin, my hair, my lashes, my body – nothing felt the same.”

Now, Justyna is committed to helping other women feel good about themselves again. “It’s not a straightforward journey back to normal, mentally or physically. I want to help others like me to feel strong and beautiful again, inside and out.”