Cancer survivor completes ultra marathon just weeks after completing treatment
A cancer survivor from Macclesfield has completed an ultramarathon just weeks after finishing her treatment.
Emma Marks completed a 29-mile run of the Peak District on Sunday, September 20, ascending over 5,700ft.
In doing so, the 43-year-old has raised just over £4,000 for Cancer Research.
She said: "I wanted to show that there is a life after cancer, that is what drove me to complete this challenge.
"As we got further and further into the run and I realised how capable I was of doing it, this energy just hit me.
"Before the challenge I put provisions in place because I thought I might end up walking the end of the route but that never came.
"I wasn't feeling tired, a tiredness that I had felt all the time throughout my cancer treatment.
"I realised how strong I felt again and it just gave me even more energy!"
Emma was diagnosed with HER2-positive grade three breast cancer in November 2024.
A GBUltras-sponsored ultra runner, she had noticed a big dip in her energy levels, with doctors initially believing this to be a sign of the perimenopause.
However, when Emma discovered a hard and visually noticeable lump by chance, she was sent for a mammogram.
"They didn't say it there and then but doctors pretty much prepared me for what was to come," she said.
"I had to wait about four weeks for the results and it was just awful, lots of sleepless nights,
"So by the time I got the diagnosis I was pretty prepared for what was coming but not necessarily the level of treatment that would be required."
What followed was the 'most difficult' period of Emma's life with chemotherapy, a single m
The first round of chemotherapy came just before Christmas and left Emma unable to speak or eat, meaning she had ice lollies and a Huel shake instead of a turkey dinner.
The second round gave Emma an infection, with a barking cough keeping her awake for days on end.
"That was a really scary time because I was convinced it had gone to my lungs," she said.
Following the mastectomy in April, Emma had 15 rounds of radiotherapy.
During this, she challenged herself to go for a run after every session.
In August, Emma rang the bill to signal the end of her treatment and immediately set her sights on getting back to full fitness.
"It was just about gaining my life back, because you lose so much of it when you're having treatment" she said.
"People would see me out running but they wouldn't see the times that you were in bed, feeling the most unwell that I've ever felt in my life.
"And it's really scary because you don't know what's going on inside. You always fear has it spread? Has it got worse?
"There is a constant fear."
Emma's charity trail marathon for Cancer Research on Sunday began at the Church House Inn in Sutton, where she was joined by a dozen or so friends and family.
The challenging route took her to Tegg's Nose, White Nancy, Lamaload Reservoir, Shining Tor, Three Shire Head, Gradbach Mill, Shutlingsloe and Macclesfield Forest before arriving back at the pub.
As if that wasn't daunting enough, the weather did Emma no favours.
She said: "We had an hour or two where it was dry in the morning and then it was just torrential downpours. It didn't It didn't let up once.
"In fact, as we got nearer to the pub, it got heavier. By this point, we were all laughing because you thought it couldn't get any worse and then it did. It was like a monsoon!"
You can donate to Emma's JustGiving page here.
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