At 19, Christine Franks, an accomplished taekwondo athlete found a lump in her breast.

Shortly after, it was confirmed that she had Stage 3 Breast Cancer.

Frightened and fearing the worst, she contacted the Solas Cancer Support Centre the very next day and a full suite of treatments, therapies and services were offered not just to Christine but to her family also.

These services were, and are, entirely free thanks to the generous annual donations and fundraising efforts across the year, but most notably the Run and Walk for Solas.

Now aged 21, Christine is in full health following a decision to undergo a mastectomy and she has just returned from competing in Spain in her chosen discipline of taekwondo where she won the World Cup.

Her involvement with the sport never wavered throughout her sickness or her treatment, and with a support system including her father Master Franks, her mum Lisa, and her boyfriend James, she never stopped moving forwards and looking to the future.

Christine's story is one of tremendous courage, tenacity, love, and most importantly hope because at 19 no young person ever expects to receive such devastating news, to become part of a rare statistic.

Ultimately it was her decision to breast check, to act on what she found and to engage with medical and therapeutic supports and services which saved her life.

Registration for the Run and Walk for Solas is still open and can be made here.

Keep up to date on all the latest from The Big Breakfast Blaa with Ollie and Dymphna from 6am until 10am daily.

At 19, Christine Franks, an accomplished taekwondo athlete found a lump in her breast.
Shortly after, it was confirmed that she had Stage 3 Breast Cancer.
Frightened and fearing the worst, she contacted the <a href="https://solascentre.ie/run-walk-for-solas-2026/">Solas Cancer Support Centre </a>the very next day and a full suite of treatments, therapies and services were offered not just to Christine but to her family also.
These services were, and are, entirely free thanks to the generous annual donations and fundraising efforts across the year, but most notably the Run and Walk for Solas.
Now aged 21, Christine is in full health following a decision to undergo a mastectomy and she has just returned from competing in Spain in her chosen discipline of taekwondo where she won the World Cup.
Her involvement with the sport never wavered throughout her sickness or her treatment, and with a support system including her father Master Franks, her mum Lisa, and her boyfriend James, she never stopped moving forwards and looking to the future.
Christine's story is one of tremendous courage, tenacity, love, and most importantly hope because at 19 no young person ever expects to receive such devastating news, to become part of a rare statistic.
Ultimately it was her decision to breast check, to act on what she found and to engage with medical and therapeutic supports and services which saved her life.
Registration for the Run and Walk for Solas is still open and can be made <a href="https://solascentre.ie/run-walk-for-solas-2026/">here.</a>
<a href="https://wlrfm.com/podcasts/the-big-breakfast-blaa">Keep up to date on all the latest from The Big Breakfast Blaa with Ollie and Dymphna from 6am until 10am daily.</a>

Start your day with Ollie Carroll, Dymphna Nugent and the WLR News team on The Big Breakfast Blaa, who will bring you plenty of on-air banter, laughter, great music, fantastic competitions, features and much, much more… And as well as being entertained you’ll also be kept well informed with all the very latest news, sport and traffic updates from our team. It's as much a part of Waterford life as the Blaa itself! The Big Breakfast Blaa is brought to you in association with <a href="https://coffeehouselane.ie/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Coffee House Lane</a> <a href="https://www.wlrfm.com/listenback">Listen back to The Big Breakfast Blaa here</a>.

Start your day with Ollie Carroll, Dymphna Nugent and the WLR News team on The Big Breakfast Blaa, who will bring you plenty of on-air banter, laughter, great music, fantastic competitions, features and much, much more… And as well as being entertained you’ll also be kept well informed with all the very latest news, sport and traffic updates from our team. It's as much a part of Waterford life as the Blaa itself! The Big Breakfast Blaa is brought to you in association with&nbsp;&lt;a href="<a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="https://coffeehouselane.ie/">https://coffeehouselane.ie/</a>" target="_blank" rel="noopener"&gt;Coffee House Lane&lt;/a&gt;&nbsp;&lt;a href="<a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="https://www.wlrfm.com/listenback&quot;>Listen">https://www.wlrfm.com/listenback"&gt;Listen</a> back to The Big Breakfast Blaa here&lt;/a&gt;.