HUSBAND and father Wayne Hennessy, is running his first ever half-marathon this weekend because of his "inspirational" wife.

Mr Hennessy, 45, from Redcar, is tackling the Humberside Half Marathon on Sunday to help his wife, Melanie, raise money for the charity she set up after being diagnosed with two brain tumours.

"Mel is a constant source of inspiration to me. Even when she is not feeling well she somehow manages to see the bright side of life," said Mr Hennessy, who has been in training for the run for months.

Mrs Hennessy was diagnosed with two brain tumours in 2009, just a few weeks after giving birth to their daughter, Daisy, now three.

The birth of Daisy was remarkable in itself, as she was conceived naturally after eight years of unsuccessful IVF treatment for infertility.

But even more remarkably, doctors told the couple that Mrs Hennessy's slowly growing tumours would probably have remained unnoticed had it not been for her pregnancy.

She underwent surgery and radiotherapy to ease pressure on the brain but this resulted in the loss the sight of her left eye.

Despite needing further treatment she now says she is on a mission to increase awareness about brain tumours, which are the biggest cancer killer of children and adults under the age of 40.

In November 2012 - after discovering that research into brain tumours is woefully underfunded - Mrs Hennessy set up a charitable group called M.I.N.E. (Money Is Needed Everyday) under the umbrella of national UK charity, Brain Tumour Research.

To date M.I.N.E. has raised more than £6,000, to match the £1m a year Brain Tumour Research plough into finding a cure for this form of cancer.

Mr Hennessy, a power station charge hand, said: "I wanted to do my bit and set myself a challenge.

"I have never done any running before so I started training, going out running along the sea-front early in the mornings or late in the evening when I finished work, or going on the treadmill when the weather wasn't so great.

"I feel very fit now and have lost a stone! I just hope all goes well on Sunday."

Mrs Hennessy, 42, said: "I am so proud of Wayne."