Brave Cheryl's very special reason for wanting to help cancer charities by raising money at bowling marathon

Cheryl Dryden-Lock hopes to complete 39 games over the 13 hours of the event at the Red Rose Bowl centre in Preston on Monday, September 26 and is inviting challengers to take her on to help boost the amount raised.

Charities to benefit will be Breast Cancer UK, the Roy Castle Lung Cancer Foundation and Hug In a Bag Blackpool and the marathon is at the bowls centre in Greenbank Street between 10am and 11pm.

Cheryl, a 46-year-old social housing officer from Mereside, was diagnosed with breast cancer last November – purely by chance after she visited her GP about an abscess under an arm .

That turned out to be unrelated to the cancer, but the GP referred her for a mammogram, four years ahead of the minimum ages for regular checks, and two tumours were found.

"Thankfully they were in the early stages,” she said. “I dread to think what might have been the scenario if they hadn’t been found when they were.”

Since then, Cheryl has undergone six rounds of gruelling chemotherapy and 20 rounds of radiotherapy as well as surgery to remove the tumours and the prognosis now is good.

But because the breast cancer is the kind that it is, she has been advised to have her ovaries removed to prevent cancer in that part of her body and her pre-op visit to hospital comes soon after the bowls marathon.

"I’m just so grateful for the treatment I have had so far and that it was found early,” she said. “Awareness is crucial, so it’s important to check yourself – and research is vital, and funds for these charities can help with that.”

Cheryl’s desire to help the three charities concerned is even greater because two members of her immediate family have also been diagnosed with cancer – her mum Sheila, with lung cancer, and her brother Vinny with cancer of the tongue.

"It has been a really tough time for the family,” she said. “I really want to raise as much money as I can for three great causes and I hope people will support me, come along on the day and hopefully challenge me for a game or two.

"I just want to give something back after all the great care I and other members of the family. have received.”

Cheryl and her husband Gary have been keen bowlers going back years, when they played in a team together, but her love of the game was rekindled about five years ago when she took part in a corporate event.

She has since been keen to play again on a regular basis and with her bowls partner hailing from Chorley, Preston was chosen as the ideal venue.

Challengers in the bowls marathon are welcome to turn up to Red Rose Bowl on Greenbank Street, off Blackpool Road, on the day, while details of how to donate to Cheryl’s fund-raising drive are available here.