Sian's Harefield Marathon Walk
Siân's Harefield Marathon Walk
Fundraising for Royal Brompton & Harefield Hospitals Charity
Story
Inspired by the astounding bravery and resilience of our friend Siân, we are walking to raise funds and awareness for the Harefield Hospital, and their amazing work with those who have had, or are waiting for, heart or lung transplants.
Siân had been living with Arrhythmic Right Ventricular Cardiomyopathy (ARVC), a congenital heart condition, since she was diagnosed with it aged 24 in 1999. She was on medication to help manage the condition and had a Cardiac Defibrillator (ICD) implanted in 2000. The condition was mostly well managed, although she suffered a few dramatic flare-ups involving shocks from her ICD, which saved her life on several occasions.
In summer 2023, Siân suffered an extreme cardiac episode while on holiday on the Greek island of Zakynthos. She had to be urgently transported to the mainland, where she was cared for in Patras Hospital for a week. On Siân's return to the UK, she experienced increasing problems with the rhythm of her heart which necessitated a couple of lengthy ablation procedures.
In June 2024, Sian went into intractable heart failure and was told that the only way forward was a heart transplant. Following a stint at St. George's, Siân was assessed at Harefield Hospital, after which she was put on the urgent heart transplant list and admitted as an in-patient to await a suitable heart.
One of the psychological challenges of being on the transplant list is that there’s no knowledge of how long each patient is going to have to wait for an appropriate organ and no certainty over how long it will take to recover after surgery.
The only certainty is that this is different for everyone, so the staff at Harefield and the facilities available to patients are crucial to the wellbeing of those waiting, as Siân explains:
“During my time at Harefield, I was able to benefit from the ‘family room’ which was donated by another family after fundraising efforts. This room is a haven for patients needing a change of scene, and a less sterile environment in which to meet family and friends."
“As a music teacher, I also benefitted from being able to have a keyboard in my room and was therefore able to give piano lessons to a couple of the nurses – a source of great pleasure for me. I hope that through our fundraising efforts, we can contribute towards similar support and relief going forwards.”
After a four-month-stay in hospital, and a few false starts, on 5th October 2024, Siân underwent a heart transplant. Her recovery was far from smooth, but she battled through, incredibly courageously, and was discharged from hospital at the end of November. She was overjoyed to be out of hospital in time to spend a wonderful Christmas with all her family.
As you can see from the photos, with the help of family, friends, and the brilliant staff at Harefield, Siân is making an excellent recovery, and is making plans to celebrate her 50th birthday later this year.
Siân said:
The care and support I received from all members of staff was incredible, from the world-class doctors and the brilliantly caring and knowledgeable specialist nurses and healthcare assistants, to the amazing support staff and wonderful housekeeping team."
Everyone made an effort to get to know me really well and made me feel part of a supportive and caring community. They gave me the strength and confidence to fight in what could have otherwise been an unbearable situation.”
Siân would like to thank the donor family, St George’s and Harefield Hospitals for everything. She would also like to thank Mark, Megan, Ben and her wider family for their love and strength.
And finally, all her friends who were there for her through this time and who are coming together to show their support by taking part in this walk or contribute with their sponsorship.
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