I am running the London Marathon to raise money in loving memory of little Alfie, all his angel friends, and all those who are living in hope of the miracle cure that is desperately needed for those who are living with Mitochondrial Disease.

We knew Alfie was chronically sick. He had a Mitochondrial Disease. We always knew that there was no cure or magic medicine, that Alfie would never get better and that he would never reach adulthood. Knowing this didnt make our pain any more bearable on the day we lost our angel.

On Tuesday 5th Jan 2010 Alfie suffered cardiac arrest and respiratory failure. Alfie's heart stopped beating in the ambulance on the way to the hospital. It didnt beat again for an hour. As a result of this, Alfie suffered severe brain damage. On Friday the 8th January, doctors carried out a Brain Stem test, which Alfie failed twice. They gave us the devasting news that they were under no obligation to continue to keep Alfie on life support as his brain had died. He was just 2 years old. My brave little boy lost his fight against Mitochondrial disease on 8th January 2010 at 12.18pm with his mummy and daddy by his side.

So brave, so small and so beautiful, full of hope and promise. Alfie taught us to love, to hope beyond expectation and to trust in the unknown. We didnt know what pain was til the day Alfie went to heaven. That pain will never go away and our hearts will always be emptier. He gave us strength that we never knew we had and blessed our lives with happiness.

Alfie was without a doubt, a true angel on earth and our bond will never be broken.

Mitochondrial Disease affects around 6,000 adults and children in the UK, however most of us have not even heard of it. As a rare disease there is very little awareness, yet it has a major impact on families with sometimes devastating consequences.

Mitochondria are required to produce the energy that powers our cells, therefore vital for all the major organs of our body to function properly.

There is currently no cure for mitochondrial disease.

Mitochondrial diseases result from failures of the mitochondria. Mitochondria are responsible for creating more than 90% of the energy needed by the body to sustain life and support growth. When they fail, less and less energy is generated within the cell. Cell injury and even cell death follow. If this process is repeated throughout the body, whole systems begin to fail, and the life of the person this is happening to is severely compromised.