THEIR best friend fought and won a battle against breast cancer – now a York couple are preparing to hit the city’s streets to raise money for other sufferers.

Christine and John Bramwell, of Holgate, will join thousands of others who are set to take part in the Jane Tomlinson York 10K this summer – two years after friend Jo Sloan was diagnosed with cancer.

The couple have been best friends with Jo and her husband, Christopher for 16 years. Christine, 43, said when Jo was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2008 the news devastated them all.

She said: “We are a very close-knit group. So when Jo was diagnosed with cancer after she found a lump in her breast it was a shock to all of us.

She said Jo had to have surgery and a course of chemotherapy and then radiotherapy.

“The treatment was very hard going and Jo lost all of her hair.”

Jo, of Lincoln, is now on the mend and Christine said to mark her road to recovery the four of them want to take part in this year’s 10k on August 1. They will all be raising money for the event’s official charity – Jane’s Appeal – which helps people suffering with cancer.

Christine said: “I did the first Jane Tomlinson run last year by myself. I was thinking about entering again and I asked John, Jo and Christopher if they wanted to do it as well.

“Jo is well on the road to recovery now and her hair is growing back, but she really wants to get fit and healthy and lose some weight. So I suggested we do this run together – the four of us.

“It will be emotional to do it together – all of us fit and healthy.”

Christine is a keen runner and trains three times a week. She is also taking part in the Hull 10k and Leeds 10k – also part of the Jane Tomlinson Run For All series.

“We just want to give something back to charity,” she said.

“We are going to run for the Jane’s Appeal and we hope to raise as much money as possible.”

Jo, 45, said: “I am feeling really good at the moment and I started my training slowly, but surely. I am really looking forward to taking part in the event.”

To take part in the run, visit runforall.com To volunteer, visit runforall.com/volunteering