Ex-Coronation Street star Karen Henthorn has called on people to join her in a squat challenge to raise money for Stand Up To Cancer.
She has backed the charity’s fundraising campaign in memory of her dad, who died when she was 19.
Karen – who played Teresa Bryant in the ITV show – is calling Manchester residents to do the 100 squats a day challenge next month.
The challenge can be adapted to suit everyone’s fitness levels and can be done anytime, anywhere. After the month, you would have racked up 3,000 squats aiding life-saving research.
Cancer is the number one cause of death in the UK, with an estimated one out of two of us will receive a diagnosis in our lifetime.
In the North West around 44,100 people are diagnosed every year.
She said: “I Support Stand Up to Cancer because you are donating, fundraising, or volunteering to literally save lives. It’s as simple as that.”
The former Corrie actress lost her dad Peter, when he was 44. She did not know that he was suffering from cancer until after the post mortem.
She said: “That was the first time I knew he had cancer, in his liver and lungs, and the first time anyone told me he was an alcoholic. And that was it, there was no support. It was different back then, so that was it.”
Karen also faced her own cancer diagnosis in 2011. After being referred to a skin specialist, she was diagnosed with basal cell carcinoma – a non-melanoma skin cancer – which normally develops on the outermost layer of the skin.
Since her initial operation, she has had two further cancerous lumps removed, one from her chest and one from her right arm.
Stand Up to Cancer wants to help see three in four people survive their cancer by 2034. The charity says it has raised more than £93million since its inception in 2012, funding 64 clinical trials and research projects involving more than 13,000 patients.
The Stand Up to Cancer campaign will be launched with a live show on Channel 4 at 7pm on Friday November 3.
To sign up for the 100 squats a day challenge; click here.
To find out more about the charity and the work they carry out visit su2c.org.uk
