In order to raise money for the Huntington’s Disease Association I will be struggling past the finish line of my first half marathon behind my
wonderful friend Holly who will be raising money for Shooting Star Chase, an amazing children’s hospice charity.

Huntington's Disease is a devastating neurodegenerative disease for which there is currently no cure. Since very few people know about
the condition I have decided to try to raise awareness of the condition and raise some money for the Huntington’s Disease Association, a charity which provides support to families in the UK who are struggling with this complex and heart-breaking disease every day.

In HD sufferers an inherited faulty gene causes brain damage that gets
progressively worse over time and can affect movement, cognition (perception, awareness, thinking, judgement) and behaviour. In the early stages symptoms include personality changes, mood swings, involuntary movements, irritability and altered behaviour. While most carriers of the faulty gene will develop problems between the ages of 30 and 50, symptoms can start at any age and will slowly progress over the course of about 20 years until the person dies. In the later stages of Huntington's disease, the person will lose the ability to walk, talk, eat and drink and will be fully reliant on specialist nursing care.

Children have a 50% chance of inheriting the faulty gene from their parents, hence the condition destroys families generation after generation.

There is lots of amazing research currently taking place which has made progress in identifying ways of slowing down or halting the condition through ‘gene silencing’. 

In the meantime there are 12,000 people in England and Wales living with this unimaginable disease and the HDA provides much needed care, advice, support and guidance to HD sufferers, their families and healthcare professionals.

Please help me raise some money for these amazing services that are a lifeline for those affected by the disease.