Deputy Sports and Culture Minister Rhona Brankin was back at her desk yesterday, six weeks after undergoing major surgery for breast cancer.

''I have had cancer and I am just ready to get on with the rest of my life,'' she said as she breezed into her office at Victoria Quay in Leith, hoping that her experience might give some help to other women faced with the same diagnosis.

Around 3300 new cases are diagnosed each year in Scotland - the largest cancer by far among women, accounting for 1200 deaths a year.

Ms Brankin discovered a lump in one breast in the same week she turned 50 and thought twice before deciding to make the matter public.

''It was a hard decision but I thought it was important to be up front and open because there are so many myths about this illness,'' she said.

''In a sense, making it public helped me because I got a tremendous amount of support. I had hundreds of cards and letters from women I did not know, from all over Scotland. The support from the general public was astounding.''

Ms Brankin said she was fortunate in detecting the lump quickly and then having rapid confirmation at Edinburgh's Western General and early surgery at St John's Hospital in Livingston.

She opted to have her single mastectomy and reconstruction done at the same time, which involved removing stomach muscle and fat.

Subsequent tests found no trace of the disease in lymph gland material which had also been removed, nor elsewhere. She does not need radiotherapy or chemotherapy but will continue to take the anti-cancer drug Tamoxifen.

''My consultant said it really was the best possible news. I have been told it was a very mild form of cancer and it was localised. I should be fine and I don't have to go back to the breast clinic for four months.''

The Midlothian MSP spent 10 days in hospital and later received support and counselling at Maggie's Centre at the Western.

''It was very uncomfortable and I was very tired. It was hard going for everybody, particularly for my family.''

The deputy Minister said she was conscious of the fact that, living in Edinburgh, she had access to fast and effective specialist treatment not readily available to women in more remote areas.

She said her colleague, Health Minister Susan Deacon, and others in the NHS were aware of such disparities and were making efforts to remove them. She said she would be an active campaigner for better treatment.

''When you have had personal experience like this you obviously feel more strongly and passionately about things. I have only got praise for the nursing and medical staff. It was excellent care, as was the support I got and the willingness of people to take time to explain things. St John's was terrific.

''It is important that this is available for all women in Scotland who are diagnosed with this disease.''

She added: ''I regarded myself as a fit and healthy 50-year-old and there was no family history of breast cancer. It came as a bolt out of the blue.''

Ms Brankin urged other women to think positively about the disease, examine themselves frequently and never ignore any lump.

''If there is any sign of a lump, don't be frightened, do something about it. Some women hang off, but the important thing is to do something quickly because that increases the chance of a successful outcome.''

Ms Brankin was able to enjoy a brief holiday in southern Spain with her journalist husband Peter Jones before getting back behind her desk.

Initially, she plans to take things relatively easy and it will still be a few weeks before she gets the chance of a round of golf or is albe to get back on her horse.

''I just want to get on with my job again,'' she said.