A FAMILY, including three generations of cancer survivors, is among those taking part in a forthcoming charity event.

Peter Howe and his family, of Normanby, Teesside, will don their cycling shorts for the Durham Cycle for Life event, in aid of Cancer Research, on Sunday, August 11.

They have a special reason for wanting to be involved as two of family members, Mr Howe's grandmother and his wife Barbara, have both had breast cancer, his 15-year-old granddaughter Laura has leukaemia and Mr Howe himself has had kidney cancer.

Mr and Mrs Howe, both 61, along with Laura, her father Dave, sister Naomi, ten, and brother Joe, six, who donated bone marrow for Laura, all plan to embark on the ride, from Meadowfield Leisure Centre.

A keen sportsman, Mr Howe first noticed that something was wrong with his health when training for the London Marathon in 1996.

He said: "I started suffering from lethargy and not recovering from my training runs. When I noticed blood in my urine I went straight to the doctor."

Mr Howe's GP immediately referred him to a specialist, and ten days later, he had his kidney removed.

But a year later, he was back to peak fitness, and ran the London Marathon, aged 56, in only three hours and 57 minutes.

He spends much of his time taking part in fundraising activities, including a cycle ride across America in 1992.

He is joined by his family, including Laura, who in 2000 won the Cleveland Young Citizen of the Year Award and in 2001 the Princess Diana Award, in many of them.