Kat (39), who lives with husband Chris and their sons Ronnie (seven) and Stanley (five) in Cottam, has signed up to Blackpool Festival of Running’s 5k on Saturday, 26th April. She will then follow this run with a 10k in Tatton Park, a 10k trail run in Ullswater, a half marathon and a 10 mile run in Milton Keynes, and next year’s (2026) Manchester Marathon.
Demanding a punishing training schedule, Kat, who works at the Cardiac Centre at Blackpool Victoria Hospital, is hoping her race calendar will lead to sponsorship via her online fundraising page at https://www.justgiving.com/page/destination-marathon with all the money raised going to Rosemere Cancer Foundation.
Kat said: “I was a runner before my cancer diagnosis. I ran during my chemotherapy treatment to help my mental health and to show my boys that anything is possible if you attack challenges head on and now, I am running for Rosemere Cancer Foundation as I cannot fault the care and compassion from the staff I encountered during my treatment at Rosemere Cancer Centre. It made an incredibly difficult journey more manageable and I would like to take this opportunity to give something back.”
Fit with a full-time job and no family history of cancer, Kat went to A&E at the Royal Preston Hospital in October 2023 suffering from sudden severe abdominal pain. She was admitted with suspected appendicitis but a CT scan revealed a large mass on her bowel.
By the following afternoon, after further tests, Kat was told she had bowel cancer and needed surgery to remove a tumour. Kat said: “I had had none of the symptoms you’re supposed to look out for. With hindsight, I had been feeling very tired but I had put this down to working and looking after the boys. At the time, my youngest wasn’t sleeping through the night.”
Following her surgery, Kat was prescribed eight cycles of chemotherapy. She had her first in January 2024. Kat finished her final cycle at the end of June 2024 but after cycle seven, ran one of her fastest 5ks in a long time!
Kat said: “Whether I walked, ran or walked and ran, exercising really helped me. It got me out of the house and made me feel more like myself.”
Kat had to undergo a hernia operation last October to help her surgical wound heal better but since then, all her follow-up scans and tests show Kat is now in remission and starting to rebuild her fitness.
While husband Chris was already a runner, Kat’s dedication to the sport has now inspired her two sisters, Helen and Susie, to take it up and also raise funds for Rosemere Cancer Foundation. Helen, a Milton Keynes based Vocal Coach, and Susie, a Police Officer in Birmingham, will be beside Kat for all six of her planned races.
Rosemere Cancer Foundation works to bring world class cancer treatments and services to cancer patients from throughout Lancashire and South Cumbria being treated at Rosemere Cancer Centre, the region’s specialist cancer treatment and radiotherapy centre at the Royal Preston Hospital, and also at another eight local hospital cancer units across the two counties.
The charity funds cutting-edge equipment, clinical research, staff training and innovative services and initiatives that the NHS cannot afford in order to make patients’ cancer journey more effective, comfortable and stress-free. For further information on its work, including how to make a donation, visit www.rosemere.org.uk