Coronation Street fans have been reacting to the news that Kit Green's life is to be shaken by an unexpected cancer diagnosis in another hard-hitting health storyline for the long-running ITV soap.
Those who follow the show, filmed in Salford, have been speculating about what the detective could be hiding following a number of unexplained and missed phone calls in recent weeks.
Family secret revealed
Spoilers for next week's episodes revealed that when Kit's half-sister, Gemma Winter-Brown, tracks down their aunt, Celeste Butterfield, an awkward encounter turns to horror when her estranged family member's health suddenly fails. Todd arrives just as Gemma leaves, only to clash with Celeste and storm out.
Later, having seen paramedics rush to Celeste's room at the hotel, Gemma breaks the news to her mum, Bernie Winter-Alahan, that Celeste has died, leaving behind a devastating family secret.
It has now been confirmed that the family are made aware that they may carry the familial BRCA gene. Carrying a familial BRCA (Breast Cancer) gene mutation means inheriting a harmful change in the BRCA1 or BRCA2 genes from a parent, which significantly raises your lifetime risk of developing certain cancers.
Kit's diagnosis
But as Bernie and Gemma face testing, unbeknownst to them and the viewers, Kit has already been seeking medical help due to concerns about his own health. In a new ITV promo trailer, available to watch on YouTube, viewers see a nervous Kit attending the hospital to get his results.
With breast cancer not initially on his radar, Kit is floored to hear he has stage 3 breast cancer, posing a very serious threat to his life, something almost 500 men in the UK face every year.
Although male breast cancer is real, it is rare, and as it accounts for less than one per cent of all breast cancer cases, many men do not realise they can get it, which leads to embarrassment, delayed diagnoses, and higher mortality rates.
Fans react
In scenes to be aired in September, viewers will follow Kit's journey from diagnosis, to denial, to treatment and family relationships as he struggles to deal with the life-changing news and what it means for him as a man.
The Coronation Street production team are working closely with Macmillan Cancer Support and Breast Cancer Now to accurately portray Kit's cancer while raising awareness of the very real risks of the illness amongst men.
Following news of the new storyline, Corrie fans were quick to share their thoughts. @WayhaughtLunar said: "I am looking forward to this Storyline with Kit, Jacob will bring a whole new side to him, and we will actually see Kit emotionally vulnerable and needing to lean on people more, especially those he probably pushed away because he felt like he didn't need them! #Corrie."
@TwellyWatcher commented: "Breast cancer storyline for Kit in @itvcorrie exploring the topic of male breast cancer and passing on the gene. Didn't see this coming. #Corrie." @sammi_heartbeat echoed: "Omg.. wow.. didn't see this coming. it's not talked about enough that men can get breast cancer too. Jacob is going to smash this storyline."
@polingirl shared: "I thought Emmerdale would do this SL first with Aaron since we've known for a while that he has the gene. Either way, I know Jacob is going to do a great job." @KatieJukesy added: "Despite not particularly vibing with Kit the majority of the time. I think the male breast cancer storyline for him is decent because its the stereotype of not knowing men can get it but impacting his work too being in the police like... there's that expectation there and with everything he has going on with sarah and that.. I just think Jacob is a perfect actor to do it."
On learning of the storyline, actor Jacob said: "I genuinely didn't know that men could get breast cancer and I felt, to make it authentic, that Kit shouldn't know that men can get breast cancer either. Speaking to the charities and male survivors has been really insightful, lots of men don't know they can get this and for Kit it's that utter disbelief of how can this be? Not only for his age, but how can I have this as a bloke and who else in the family could be affected."
