The Dingles history with cancer: Zak, Faith, Chas and Sarah have all faced the illness
Cain is the latest Dingle facing itThe Dingles have had their fair share of heartache over the years and that has often been down to cancer as Zak, Faith, Chas and Sarah have all been diagnosed with the illness.
As Cain now faces his own battle to beat prostate cancer, he has remembered how his family have suffered too. Let’s take a look.
Zak Dingle had testicular cancer in Emmerdale
In 20o1, Zak Dingle had just admitted to Cain he was his real dad. The men had had a violent showdown, but then Cain accepted Zak as his dad.
Things seems harmonious in the Dingle family. However then Zak’s health took a turn. He was diagnosed with testicular cancer.
Zak confided in Seth Armstrong and decided not to get treatment. But Seth, Marlon and Sam kidnapped him and forced him to come to his senses. He went to the hospital and treatment was successful.
The illness made Zak realise his priorities and he made sure his marriage to Lisa and his relationships with his kids were solid.
Faith Dingle dies
When Faith Dingle came to Emmerdale after a period of absence from her children’s lives, she was hiding the secret she had had breast cancer and a double mastectomy. However in 2022 her cancer returned and this time it was terminal.
Her relationship with Cain was incredibly strained by this point and he refused to be there for his mother. The news hit him hard though and he lashed out at all those around him as he struggled to deal with it.
He eventually agreed to support Faith, but was stunned by her decision not to continue treatment. Faith and Cain were able to make peace and he pledged to be there for her until the end. And that he was.
In October 2022, Cain discovered Faith in her bedroom at The Woolpack. She had taken an overdose to end her life. Cain tried to call an ambulance, but seeing Faith was ready, he stopped. He sat by her side talking to her and finally told her he loved her.
Faith died in his arms and he sat sobbing over her body.
Sarah Sugden beats cancer three times in Emmerdale
Cain’s granddaughter Sarah has had a form of cancer three times. When Sarah was still very young she began bruising easily and was very tired. Her parents – Andy Sugden and Debbie Dingle – were worried someone was hurting her. But the truth was Sarah had Fanconi anaemia.
Her anaemia developed into leukaemia and poor Sarah was told she needed a bone marrow transplant.
A donor was found but when they pulled out, desperate Debbie and Andy decided the best thing to do was to have another baby – a saviour sibling – in the hope that they would be a match.
Debbie gave birth to Jack who was – luckily – a match for Sarah. She had the transplant and recovered well.
Throat cancer
Sarah was then diagnosed with throat cancer and needed a innovative – and expensive – type of treatment called proton beam therapy.
The Dingles rallied round, setting up a fundraising page which received an anonymous donation of £20,000. Eventually the donor was revealed to be Sarah’s great-gran, Faith Dingle. The money was raised and Sarah had the treatment.
Once more, the treatment was successful and for a while it looked like Sarah was recovering well, but then she was diagnosed with heart failure – a rare side effect of her chemotherapy. She needed a heart transplant.
Cervical cancer
In 2025 Sarah become determined to have a baby. She set about investigating IVF, knowing because of her many health problems a natural conception was impossible.
During her tests it was discovered she had cervical cancer. Sarah underwent a procedure to remove the cells, but things escalated and the doctors were forced to remove her womb. It meant Sarah could no longer carry a child herself.
So Charity stepped up to be her surrogate. Only Charity is actually carrying Ross Barton’s baby, not Sarah and Jacob’s. So that’s going to end in more tears soon enough.
Chas Dingle – breast cancer in Emmerdale
Chas was diagnosed with breast cancer in January 2024 after Liam Cavanagh felt a lump in her breast. Further tests revealed Chas is a carrier of the faulty BRCA2 gene, which increased her risk of developing certain cancers.
Chas made the brave decision to undergo a double mastectomy.
She also encouraged the rest of the Dingle family to undergo genetic testing to see if they had inherited the same BRAC2 faulty gene. Brothers Cain and Caleb were clear, but son Aaron has also got the gene. He took the news badly, but Chas supported him as he came to terms with what it could mean.
Read more: Who’s leaving Emmerdale? All the cast exits, arrivals and returns
