AN Acton man completed a five-mile sponsored walk and raised more than £2,600 for Bowel Cancer UK.

Garry Azzaro took part because, having had stage two bowel cancer, he wanted to raise awareness of the disease and its symptoms.

He is taking on Walk Together again this year and appeared on the podcast Talking Codswallop to speak about his cancer experience and to encourage people to go to their GP if things don’t feel right.

Bowel Cancer UK’s Walk Together takes place this September.

There are three events to choose from: a five-mile in-person walk though London, a ‘virtual’ five-mile walk that can be completed anywhere, or a new Walkies Together dog-walking challenge.

Every 15 minutes someone is diagnosed with bowel cancer in the UK, making it the fourth most common cancer.

Garry said: “In June 2021, I was diagnosed with stage two bowel cancer. Thankfully, it was caught in time and, after surgery and some preventative chemotherapy, I am now clear.

“After a very stressful 12 months, the Walk Together campaign felt like a chance to say ‘thank you’ to the charity and give something back.

“We planned a five-mile route taking us from Clapham to Hammersmith, picking two spots that were well-known to us as our start and finish lines.

“Bowel Cancer UK provided us with a QR code to display, so that any passers-by could scan it and be taken directly to the JustGiving page.

“I'm very excited to be taking part again this year, with a lot more energy and the knowledge that raising awareness could help so many others.”

Luke Squires, Director of Fundraising at Bowel Cancer UK, said: "We're determined to save lives and improve the quality of life of everyone affected by the disease, but we're entirely reliant on the generous support of fundraisers like Garry.”

Sign up at bowelcanceruk.org.uk/walktogether/