Dean Jo is running 31 miles this May for the Bowelbabe Fund for Cancer Research UK.

Dean Jo said "My father George was diagnosed with bowel cancer when he was 56, my age. Looking back I suspect he did not get his symptoms checked early enough and so the disease was well established when it was diagnosed. He had a colostomy but not long after it was apparent that the cancer had already spread and he died in September 1994.

"Needless to say, it was a very sad time. I was a young lawyer about to begin a job in London and my father was planning to have his first trip back to the UK and to begin some university courses when he retired, an opportunity that he had not had growing up in the north east of England. George had not retired when he died.

"Then, and now, I am resolved to promote openness about health symptoms and good care of ourselves and one another. We do need the encouragement of each other to be honest. I have a familial link  - I get checked. A Mile a Day in May is only a small commitment, but I hope it highlights a big need and encourages someone to do something about a health symptom."

43,000 people a year are diagnosed with bowel cancer. Funding research will help accelerate survival rates across the world.

Donate to Jo's fundraising page here