Firstly, she wants to honour the courageous battle of her little boy, Quade, who was diagnosed with a Wilm's tumour at just three years old. He's now six and thankfully in remission, but Mrs Sharman still has nightmares about the tough treatment he had to endure.

"He was three years old when a large 10 x 10cm tumour was found on his kidney, and it meant the kidney had to be removed and he had to undergo six months of chemo," she said.

"It was tough - the chemo drugs had to be administered through a port and I still have nightmares about that process. Quade still needs physio and occupational therapy because of the damage the treatment did to his body.

"So I'm dancing to raise funds for research into better, gentler treatments for childhood cancer."

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The second motivation for Mrs Sharman, is concern for her colleagues.

"Firefighters are the most at-risk profession for cancer because they're exposed to toxins and hazardous atmospheres," she said. "So many of my colleagues have been diagnosed with cancer - and this is another area that needs more research."

Mrs Sharman is one of 13 Wollongong business owners, medical professionals and media personalities set to light up the dance floor with local dance teachers to raise funds for Cancer Council in the 2021 event. As for her, the cause is too close to many of their hearts.

Liam Hammond, who owns Inner Athlete, lost his mother Denise who had breast cancer in May 2012, when he was 28.

"I wanted to take part in this event in mum's memory, and because I think it's something she'd be proud of," he said.

i98FM radio announcer Lyndal Rogers is taking part in honour of her friend, Peta, who died in 2019 after a battle with melanoma.

"She had a mole taken out and there'd been no further issues, then two years later she started getting headaches and found out there were tumours throughout her body," she said. "She was only 36, and she left behind two little boys."

For Illawarra Mercury reporter Ashleigh Tullis, a family history of cancer was the driver behind her participation in the event

"I wanted to challenge myself by participating in the event as many of my family members, like many other families, have fought and beaten cancer," she said.

"This is my way of helping to raise money for research into cancer cures and preventions. Whilst I'm nervous to get up on stage and perform, it is not nearly as scary as what cancer sufferers face."

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Another participant, urologist Dr Matthew Threadgate, treats patients with prostate, kidney and bladder cancer and wants to do his bit to help fund research into the prevention of disease.

"I treat a lot of patients with cancer but I don't often get the opportunity to support cancer prevention, through raising money for research," he said.

The event - which was cancelled in 2020 due to the COVID pandemic - is now in its sixth year, and will be held at the Wollongong Entertainment Centre on June 5.

The aim is to raise $120,000 for Cancer Council's services in the community, such as the transport to treatment program. Funds will also go to research into the prevention and treatment of cancer.

"The Cancer Council is 95 per cent funded by community events like Stars of Wollongong, which make our work possible in the local community," Cancer Council Southern NSW spokeswoman Stephanie Lake said.

"We have a bold vision, we want a cancer-free future one day ... and we are committed to investing money into world-class research to better treat and prevent cancer."

Meet the Stars of Wollongong for 2021

Thirteen lucky stars are joining forces for this year's Dance for Cancer. Announced at an event launch on Wednesday, the local identities are:

Each participant will fundraise for Cancer Council in the lead-up to the event and have their own fundraising page for online donations. Visit stars.cancercouncil.com.au/event/view/stars-of-wollongong

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