Arabella Weir has backed a campaign to beat cancer after losing four loved ones to the devastating disease.
The Two Doors Down star is launching World Cancer Day in Scotland, which takes place on Saturday.
Weir has joined forces with Cancer Research UK and is urging Scots to wear a special band on their wrists to show support for the cause.
The unity bands, on sale for a suggested donation of £2, are made of two parts, knotted together to symbolise strength.
The 59-year-old spoke of the trauma of losing her mother, father, best friend and step mother to the illness.
"I've lost so many of the people I love to cancer," she said.
"At times it has felt like being stuck on a train track while the trains keep coming up and hitting me.
"I think when your closest loved ones are dying, all you can do is be there for them in the way you would like loved ones to be there for you."
The author, who lives in London but was raised by Scottish parents, added: "Wearing a unity band or donating is a simple and easy way to show support, to help fund vital research to develop new treatments so more families have more tomorrows."
Every hour, four people are diagnosed with cancer in Scotland, according to charity figures.
Lisa Adams, Cancer Research UK's spokeswoman in Scotland, said: "World Cancer Day provides an opportunity for people in Scotland as well as across the world to show that together we can be a powerful force to beat cancer sooner.
"Whatever the motivation - to remember a loved one, celebrate people who have overcome the disease, or to rally in support of those going through treatment - World Cancer Day is a chance to get involved and help more people survive this disease."
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