Sisters who survived a rare genetic condition are urging North women to join Cancer Research UK's Race for Life.
Karen McGurrell[correct], 30, and Kay, 27, suffer from Li-Fraumeni's [correct] syndrome that increases the risk of contracting cancer early in life.
The syndrome affects only 400 families in the world and having watched their father and his two brothers die from cancer, Karen and Kay, from Fulwell, Sunderland, suspected they would have a high risk of developing the disease too.
But they were still shocked when Karen was diagnosed with ovarian cancer when she was just 14 while Kay developed a form of breast cancer and had to have a double mastectomy.
Call centre manager Karen said: "Unfortunately, we know all too well the impact cancer has on a family and, having survived it myself, I know first hand that it's vitally important to help Cancer Research UK fund research into the disease.
"When I was 14, my stomach started to swell and doctors thought I had a cyst. When they operated to remove it they discovered it was cancer instead. It's extremely rare in girls of that age.
"It was a shock when we learned about Li-Fraumeni's syndrome, but we suspected that we might have an inherited risk of cancer anyway because of my dad's family."
Karen will be taking part in Cancer Research UK's fundraising Race for Life next month and will be cheered on from the sidelines by Kay who is expecting her second child in July.
Kay's five-year-old daughter Abigail [correct] has a 50pc chance of having Li-Fraumeni's syndrome and will be tested for the condition when she is older.
Cancer Research UK's Race for Life is a series of fundraising walks and runs open to all women across the United
There will be five events taking place in the North-East in Gateshead on May 22, Sunderland on June 5, Darlington and the Lake District on June 12, Carlisle on July 3 and Newcastle on July 10.
Every week 120 women in the North-East are diagnosed with cancer. Cancer Research UK spends around £2m each year on research projects in Newcastle.
For more information about the Race for Life visit www.raceforlife.org or ring (08705) 134 134.
Cancer Research UK spokeswoman Julia Haran [correct] said: "Karen and Kay have supported each other through cancer and are determined to help other people with the disease by raising money for research.
"This year we want to recruit 12,000 women across the North-East to take part in Race for Life. The event is open to women of all fitness levels. It is the money you raise, not the time you complete the course in, that is important.
"Every penny raised in sponsorship will go directly to Cancer Research UK to help fund our life-saving research into ways to prevent, diagnose and treat cancer."
