Emmerdale Star Michelle Hardwick Says Vanessa’s Cancer Storyline Needed Lengthy Planning

Michelle Hardwick, also known as Vanessa Woodfield on “Emmerdale,” revealed that the show had to plan for a long time for her character’s cancer storyline. Her story kicked off last month. In upcoming scenes, the character will try to come to terms with the symptoms of her bowel cancer and prepare herself for her treatment.

Emmerdale News: Hardwick New About The Cancer Storyline

In an interview with What’s on TV, the actress revealed that she’s knew what the show bosses’ plans are for her alter ego. She recalled the time when Jane Hudson joined the soap as the new executive producer, she told her that she wanted to give Vanessa cancer. But at that time, Hudson had no idea what type of cancer yet but said they’ll talk about it.

“So I always knew that this was on the cards at some point, but I didn’t know what sort of cancer it would be,” Hardwick admitted.

Two Years After The Initial Conversation

“Straight away, you go, ‘Oh, it would be breast cancer or ovarian cancer’. Terrible still, but the obvious ones. That was about 18 months ago, two years ago,” she added.

“Then I had a meeting with her about six months ago, and that’s when she said, ‘It’s going to be bowel cancer’. It took me by surprise, and I thought, ‘Oh wow!’, but it’s for all the good reasons,” she continued.

The actress also said that it’s important for everyone to know that bowel cancer can happen to anyone, even to younger individuals. The actress has received messages from younger people praising the new storyline because it is correcting the inaccurate idea that bowel cancer is an old man’s disease.

Collaboration With Bowel Cancer UK

The soap revealed that it’s been working closely with Bowel Cancer UK to make sure that the sudser represents the storyline as correctly and as close to real life as possible.

Chief Executive Genevieve Edwards said, “We greatly appreciated the opportunity to work with the Emmerdale team on this important storyline. While everyone’s experience of diagnosis is different, it is vital that Vanessa’s story is as accurate as possible.”

“Although bowel cancer is more common in the over 50s, it can affect people of all ages. More than 2,500 people under 50, like Vanessa, are diagnosed with the disease in the UK every year,” she continued.

She added that the new storyline aims to raise awareness about bowel cancer. It hopes to encourage people to watch out for the symptoms and to consult their doctor right away.