She conquered breast cancer and now Honley woman Jude Faulkner is closing in on her triple marathon finale.

The mum-of-one is just 18 miles (30km) short of her 78 mile (125km) target.

Jude, 48, took up running 5k and 10k challenges in a bid to raise cash for cancer charity Macmillan.

After surviving cancer herself she vowed to run the distance between her home and her friend Maria Britton’s in Long Riston, near Hull, following her death from cancer last year.

She is tackling the challenge by adding up the 5k and 10k runs she takes part in across the north, including the Run For All 10k in Hull, Leeds and York, as well the various volunteer-led park runs.

Jude said Maria had been her inspiration to take up running and her motivation to continue to raise money.

She said: “When I was having treatment three years ago, Maria got a place to run the Great North Run.

“She said she’d like to do it for me and asked which charity I would like to support. I chose Macmillan.

“Once my health improved, Maria helped me to believe that I could run.

“She called our runs ‘nourishment for the soul’.

“It was something I thought I could never do and she was the one that said to me, you can.

“The fact she gave me that encouragement and belief has been tremendous.

“She taught me the skills I needed to complete my first 10k run even though she was ill herself by then.’’

Jude works as a marketing executive, medical secretary and runs her own greetings card business. She added: “I now enjoy running as a habit and I find it really motivating to run with other people.”

Viki Nixon, fundraising manager for Kirklees said “Jude has been volunteering for Macmillan Cancer Support since October 2010 and joined the Holmfirth Committee in 2012.

“We are so grateful for the time Jude commits to volunteering already, but this year she is really challenging herself and we’re all really impressed.

“We rely on people like Jude to continue fund our practical, emotional and financial support.

“All our services exist to ensuring that no one will face cancer alone.”