Coronation Street star Karen Henthorn was just nineteen when her dad was found on the streets of Manchester by police, dying from cancer at just 44. Decades on, in her late 40s, the actress' nightmares became real as she faced the same diagnosis as her father - being told by doctors that she had cancer.
“They’d brought him to our house because they thought he’d had a stroke. He’d lost his short-term memory and could only recall the address of the old family home before my parents were divorced. So, my mum put him up for the night and then she found him a care home to go in. "And that was it, there was no support. It was different back then, so that was it. It would be lovely if he was up there looking down on me now, but who knows.”
"When I eventually got to see a skin specialist they said straight away, yes, it’s cancer. So, I had that removed, then I got another when I was doing War Horse a few years later, and I remember having that one removed and going on stage that night." She’s calling on gym lovers and sofa surfers alike to flex their fundraising muscles by getting sponsored to do 100 squats every day next month. Participants can adapt the challenge to suit their fitness level and complete their squats anytime, anywhere – all at once or throughout the day. By the end of the 30 days, they will have clocked-up a total of 3,000 squats to help power life-saving research.
Karen, who also teaches screen acting for Manchester Actors’ Platform, added: “I Support Stand Up to Cancer because you are donating, fundraising, or volunteering to literally save lives. It’s as simple as that.”