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(Image: Roy Fisher)

A cancer survivor yesterday climbed London’s 41-storey Gherkin – in a 140lb antique diving suit.

Dad-of-three Lloyd Scott, 52, ascended the curving tower’s 1,037 steps in just two hours and 53 minutes, far quicker than he’d been expecting.

Lloyd, who raised more than £1,000 for the British Heart Foundation, is urging other people to take on their own ­challenges under the Britain’s Personal Best initiative launched this weekend.

Lloyd – clear of cancer for nearly 25 years – said after reaching the top of the 180-metre building: “If I can do it, anyone can.

"It doesn’t have to be as crazy as this. It can be anything from swimming the Channel to learning to knit.

“There was such a feeling of motivation after London 2012. I want to keep that going and show anything is possible.”

(Image: Roy Fisher)

Lloyd has run more than 30 marathons since beating myeloid leukaemia, ­diagnosed after he breathed poisonous fumes while a fire fighter.

The Essex hero once rescued two boys in a terrifying blaze in a first-floor flat.

Lloyd, a former goal-keeper with Leyton Orient, was saved by a bone-marrow transplant.

“When a stranger offered to donate, I vowed I would do something worthwhile with my life,” he said.

“I started training straight away and have never stopped.

“It’s 25 years next year since my ­transplant and I am still in remission. I still feel emotional about it.”

Lloyd has been appointed an ambassador for Britain’s Personal Best, which has £1million from the Lottery Fund.

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To find out more about Britain’s Personal Best visit whatsyours.org