Earlier this year, Chas was diagnosed with the same kind of breast cancer her mother Faith died from. She ultimately chose to have a double mastectomy to prevent a further recurrence.

The storyline has moved into the background following Chas’s treatment, but viewers got an update on her condition in Thursday’s episode.

The Dingle family were in a panic following Samson’s disappearance, having no idea that he’d been confronted by Moira and Mackenzie in hopes of getting him to confess to the stabbing incident with Matty

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As the family waited for answers about Samson’s whereabouts, Chas explained to Gail and Ryan that she had a hospital appointment.

When Gail asked if the cancer had returned, Chas set her straight: “No, no. It’s just a regular check-up. Just to check if everything’s okay.”

Chas admitted to Gail and Ryan that her doctors had been pushing her to have chemotherapy as a precaution.

“[The tumour] was tiny and they caught it early,” Chas told them. “For me, the side effects outweigh the small benefit so I’ve decided not to.”

Gail and Ryan remained confused over the risks Chas is facing and why she wouldn’t just go ahead with chemotherapy to be safe.

“The risk for the cancer is different to the risk from the faulty gene,” she clarified. “It’s far more complicated than that but all I do know is if I am ever worried, all I can do is call my breast nurse, and as long as I keep going to my regular check-ups, then everything is going to be fine.”

Chas then moved the scene along to Marlon’s falling out with best mate Paddy, encouraging Gail to sort it out since she had “enough on” with her check-up.

Emmerdale producers have worked with Breast Cancer Now on Chas’s on-going storyline to raise awareness for the most common form of cancer in the UK.

“When the producers first discussed this storyline with me I knew I didn’t want us to shy away from any aspect of this diagnosis for Chas,” cast member Lucy Pargeter said of the story.

“She saw her own mother ultimately die after an incurable breast cancer diagnosis, so for Chas to receive a breast cancer diagnosis herself, makes it all the more poignant. Our audience knows her so well, they have seen her relationships, know her faults, her passions, her insecurities, quirks and fears.”