A Great Yarmouth bowel cancer survivor is part of an award-winning health promotion team at Bowel Cancer UK. The charity announced recently they had won one of the Health and Wellbeing Awards from the Royal Society for Public Health (RSPH) for their Health Promotion Volunteer Programme.

Chris Stanley was diagnosed with bowel cancer in 2008 at the age of 58, after experiencing aching in the lower back, which kept getting worse. After several tests, he was referred for a colonoscopy, which revealed he had a tumour in the rectum area.

He went through six weeks of chemo- and radiotherapy before he had an operation to remove the tumour on his late father's birthday in January 2009. It took him 12 months after the operation to get back to work and five years later he was given the all clear.

Chris said: 'Since my illness, I have travelled to many places in the world. I am also giving something back by volunteering for Bowel Cancer UK, doing health seminars and talks to different groups.'

Chris has also been helping Bowel Cancer UK raise awareness of the disease by taking part in their Health Promotion Volunteer programme, with awareness talks.

Bowel cancer is the second most common cause of cancer death in the UK, affecting both men and women. Every year over 41,500 people are diagnosed with bowel cancer which equates to a diagnosis every 15 minutes and around 16,000 people die of the disease.