A FIFE amputee today begins a 108-mile charity walk from Dundee to Edinburgh.

Dr Bob Grant (61) lives in Glenrothes and works part-time as a GP in Kirkcaldy. He was treated for cancer in his right leg as a teenager in 1961 and had it amputated at Ninewells in 2002. He is doing his walk on crutches to raise money for Maggie’s Cancer Caring Centres.

In 2003, Dr Grant undertook a 100-mile walk on crutches from Edinburgh to Dundee, raising around £16,000 for Macmillan Cancer Relief. Today, he will reverse the journey, via the Fife Coastal Path, and will leave from the Maggie’s Centre in Dundee at 10am, visit the new Maggie’s Centre in Kirkcaldy and complete his journey tomorrow week at the Maggie’s Centre in Edinburgh.

Dr Grant’s wife Joan, his daughter Lorna, who lives in Dundee, friend Alison Taylor and family dog Mac will accompany him throughout the walk, while daughters Julie and Fiona will join him later in the week. The group is expecting other walkers to join them each day as they make their way to the capital.

Dr Grant said the walk had involved a lot of organisation, accommodation was now sorted and fund-raising had gone well, with almost £3000 in the fund so far.

“It’s a very different world from four years ago, with the internet and emails, but my website has been a great help in getting donations, and interest from corporate sponsors is building up,” he said.

Dr Grant was awarded an MBE in 2005 for services to cancer patients. He chairs the Scottish Cancer Group and is on a working group for research projects for teenagers and young adults with cancer.

Donations can be made on-line at www.justgiving.com/bobswalk.