The first woman to run the London Marathon topless is feeling \u201call fired up and excited\u201d to run it again this weekend.<\/p>\n
Louise Butcher, 51, last ran ran the 26.2 mile route on April 21, 2024 \u2014 two years after undergoing a double mastectomy for lobular breast cancer.<\/p>\n
On Nov. 3 last year, she was one of 250 women to take part in a topless swim, for the Royal Devon Hospitals Charity.<\/p>\n
Louise is currently undergoing a running tour of the UK, covering cities like Bath, Cardiff, Devon, London, and The Great North Run in Newcastle.<\/p>\n
UK woman Louise Butcher is preparing to run the London Marathon topless again \u2014 three years after having a double mastectomy for breast cancer. Mark Passmore\/SWNS<\/p>\n
She will now be embarking on the London Marathon this weekend, raising money for the Breast Cancer Now charity.<\/p>\n
Louise, a charity worker, from Braunton, Devon, said: \u201cThis will be my fifth marathon<\/a> in total, and I\u2019ve only been running marathons for two-and-a-half years now.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m proud of myself and proud of everyone else who has jumped on board to make topless running more normal and something that people can connect with.<\/p>\n \u201cI feel great and really strong at the moment.<\/p>\n \u201cI haven\u2019t had any injuries, and I\u2019ve been doing strength training for the last three months.\u00a0<\/p>\n Louise was the first woman to ever run the race topless last year. SWNS<\/p>\n \u201cIt is totally about looking after your body, making sure you\u2019re not doing too much: it is not just about going running.<\/p>\n \u201cThe power is in the healing.\u201d<\/p>\n In April 2022, Louise was diagnosed with lobular breast cancer, after receiving an ultrasound on her left breast.<\/p>\n The tissue was thickened, and during her first single mastectomy in June 2022, her surgeon discovered a 5 centimeter tumor close to her chest wall.<\/p>\n She had her second single mastectomy, to remover her right breast tissue, in August 2022.<\/p>\n Louise was diagnosed with lobular breast cancer in 2022. Mark Passmore\/SWNS<\/p>\n Despite feeling the \u201cpressure\u201d to get reconstructive surgery, Louise opted not to go for it \u2014 and says she wanted to fight against social norms, and feel comfortable in her own skin.<\/p>\n She received five rounds of intensive radiotherapy \u2014 and ran her first, virtual London Marathon<\/a> five after finishing treatment, on Oct. 2, 2022.<\/p>\n \u201cI didn\u2019t feel the need to stick with social norms and get reconstructive surgery,\u201d she added.<\/p>\n \u201cI accept the way I am \u2014 and it\u2019s something I\u2019ve learnt to control, despite what others think.\u201d<\/p>\n The charity volunteer ran virtually again, in the 2023 London Marathon \u2014 and vowed to take part in-person the following year.<\/p>\n Louise says she is \u201cfired up\u201d to take on the historic race again. SWNS<\/p>\n On April 21, 2024, Louise became the first woman to run the Marathon topless while showing off her mastectomy scars.<\/p>\n This year, she is \u201cbeyond excited\u201d to take part in the epic run once again.<\/p>\n Louise said: \u201cI\u2019m so excited and fired up for Sunday!<\/p>\n \u201cI have to run it to get rid of all the energy I have after taking it slower these past few weeks to prepare!\u201d<\/p>\n As well as wanting to raise awareness for lobular breast cancer, she says she also wanted to promote body positivity and self-acceptance.<\/p>\n \u201cLots of people knew me through TikTok, so I had a lot of people cheering me on,\u201d Louise said.<\/p>\n Louise has been documenting her journey on social media to inspire other and spread body positivity. Mark Passmore\/SWNS<\/p>\n \u201cIt would\u2019ve been an amazing experience doing it anyway; if I was topless or not.<\/p>\n \u201cBut people saw me topless and they were crying, women were shouting my name \u2013 it was just unbelievable.<\/p>\n \u201cBreast cancer surgeons were coming up to me and saying it was all amazing.<\/p>\n \u201cIt just felt like the right thing to do \u2014 to go topless at that time.\u201d<\/p>\n Louise managed to raise $4,650 for charity Breast Cancer Now, just by taking part in the Marathon last year.\u00a0<\/p>\n Now, she is undergoing her running tour of the UK \u2014 which will include the upcoming London Marathon, as well as the Great West and Great North runs.<\/p>\n Louise is running the marathon to raise money for the Breast Cancer Now charity. SWNS<\/p>\n Louise said: \u201cI want to empower people and document my journey to inspire others.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s about showing all the vulnerabilities.<\/p>\n \u201cI posted videos at the start, when I was going through cancer, so people can see the journey and know that you can get past those feelings.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cI think people can relate because its real.<\/p>\n \u201cSo much good can come out of negative \u2014 it may not be cancer, people go through such traumas in their lives.<\/p>\n Louise is currently on a running tour of various UK cities including London. SWNS<\/p>\n \u201cBut it doesn\u2019t mean your life has ended. You can make things positive too.\u201d<\/p>\n Louise runs around Braunton most days without a top on \u2014 and has no plans to stop anytime soon.<\/p>\n Louise added: \u201cThe whole thing has opened up a can of worms, to be honest.<\/p>\n \u201cBut I wanted that to happen \u2014 I didn\u2019t start [running topless] because I thought everyone was going to like it.<\/p>\n \u201cI was doing it to ignite change; to get people to think about what they were saying to others about their appearances.<\/p>\n \u201cI accept the way I am \u2014 this is the best my body has ever been, ever.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m the strongest I\u2019ve ever been, and the most beautiful.\u201d<\/p>\n Louise has said she will also be releasing a book<\/a> this year entitled \u2018Going Topless,\u2019 which will document her experience.\u00a0<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t\t\t