Cardiac Risk in the Young Lifeline


Cardiac Risk in the Young

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I always knew I wanted to be on stage.

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But I couldn't have done it without certain special people

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who inspired me and helped show the way.

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One of those people was Matt Beadle.

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He was my dance teacher when I was at stage school.

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He had a successful career in West End musicals

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and was someone I really looked up to.

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But mostly, I remember his massive smile.

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As a dancer, Matt was incredibly fit and seemed to be

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in perfect health.

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So, when I got the call to say that he'd dropped dead

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from a cardiac arrest, I was in shock.

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I couldn't believe that something like that could happen

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to someone so young.

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But the really shocking thing is just how many

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apparently healthy young people die from sudden cardiac arrest

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each year.

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In fact, it happened to someone else I know.

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Also, out of the blue.

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He was my big sister's friend and his name was Adam Donnelly.

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Adam was really active. He swam, played football, played rugby.

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He was just a typical, healthy, fit teenager.

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He loved to be my big brother.

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We always seemed to be getting in trouble for one thing or another

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which was normally his idea.

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He was always looking out for me and making sure that I was OK.

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When Adam was 17, the family went on holiday to Cyprus with friends.

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One day, everyone went to the beach while Adam decided to stay behind

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to swim in the hotel pool.

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We were snorkelling. We saw a friend running down

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and he said that there'd been an accident.

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I just knew that something bad had happened.

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Adam was found floating in the pool.

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He was rushed to hospital, but his heart had stopped

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and doctors couldn't revive him.

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I remember a doctor said that Adam was dead on arrival at hospital.

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And I remember hearing an awful noise.

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And the doctor got up and shut the door

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and I realised it was me making that noise.

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Oh, sorry.

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I couldn't believe that...

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a 17-year-old could die of a cardiac arrest

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with no warning.

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I don't think you ever get over losing a brother or a son.

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You learn to live with it.

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You learn a new normal. So, what was normal before,

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that will never be the same.

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I remember the impact that Adam's death had on my sister.

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And I still can't quite believe that 12 young people each week

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die of undiagnosed heart conditions.

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And that's why I support Cardiac Risk In The Young,

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or CRY.

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It's the only charity devoted exclusively to supporting families

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following a sudden cardiac bereavement

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and working with the best medics and researchers in the world

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to prevent such deaths wherever possible.

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That was Ann's 40th, so that was the April before Adam died.

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Adam's family found it hard to grieve

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without a real understanding of why they had lost him so unexpectedly.

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Had Adam died in a road accident, you'd almost have somebody to blame

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or a reason for it.

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But the way he died, I just couldn't understand it.

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It was just... I needed to know...

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why it had happened.

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Adam's mother turned to CRY for help.

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They suggested testing the rest of the family for heart problems

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at their specialist clinic.

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The results were revealing.

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Julie was diagnosed with an inherited condition

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called Brugada syndrome, which can trigger cardiac arrest.

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In one way, it was a relief because we then had a name

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for what had killed Adam. We had an answer.

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But then it opened up a whole lot of other questions as well

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because if I'd passed it onto one of my children,

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the likelihood was that I'd passed it onto both of them.

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Tests confirmed that Sian also had Brugada syndrome.

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But the good news was that doctors could offer her a treatment -

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an operation to fit a device called an ICD

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to regulate her heart and prevent a cardiac arrest.

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I've had three episodes where my ICD has worked

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and brought it back to a normal rhythm.

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It's massively reassuring.

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Being diagnosed has saved my life, 100%.

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It's a reminder of how important CRY's work is.

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If we hadn't been screened as a family,

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I could have lost two children.

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That doesn't bear thinking about.

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Sian's heart condition was picked up because of the tragic death

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of her brother.

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But CRY's focus is to identify life-threatening heart conditions

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before anyone dies.

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The reason why there are over 600 sudden deaths each year

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is because young people who are fit and well are not routinely tested

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for heart conditions.

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So, CRY believe that a screening programme for everyone

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is the best way to save lives.

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Professor Sanjay Sharma is CRY's head of screening and research.

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The National Health Service has not promoted

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or sponsored any form of screening in the young,

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and that's where CRY comes in.

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CRY's the largest screening organisation in the United Kingdom

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for the young.

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Over the years, CRY has raised millions for medical research,

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developing effective methods for screening

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and identifying young people at risk.

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I have little doubt that the money that CRY has spent

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in detecting and diagnosing young people,

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who have serious cardiac conditions,

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has gone a long way in preventing death

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and in gaining numerous decades of life for young people.

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As a teenager, my main love was football.

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I was actually the record goal scorer for my school.

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James Bailey thought he had nothing to worry about

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when his school played host to one of CRY's mass screenings.

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One after one came out and everyone was fine

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and it was my turn and then I had the test

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and they broke the news to me that there was something wrong.

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The doctor told James that he had Wolff-Parkinson-White syndrome -

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a potentially lethal heart condition -

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and he'd have to stop playing sport immediately.

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My first concern was that I had a football match that afternoon

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and then when the news properly sunk in, I realised

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the significance and the seriousness of the issue.

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It's extremely scary as a 17-year-old who had

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no idea that he had this problem.

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Suddenly, you're faced with...

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death.

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James had further screening and was approved for an operation

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that held out the promise of a complete cure.

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So, after the operation, I was back on the football field

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playing again like nothing had ever been wrong.

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To be free again and not have any of these worries,

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just go back to normal life, put all this behind me

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was fantastic.

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And that was all thanks to being diagnosed.

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So, obviously, I owe my life to CRY.

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But for Adam's sister, the pain of losing him is still there

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11 years on.

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How do you think you and your family would have coped without CRY

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being there?

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The work they do, it's priceless. I mean, if their screening

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stops one other family going through what we've gone through then

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I think they've done their job.

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I wouldn't wish what we've gone through on anyone.

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So, being able to raise money and do those screening programmes,

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it's vital to save lives.

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Last year, over 23,000 young people were screened by CRY.

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It's a completely free service that no-one else offers.

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But CRY rely completely on the generosity of its supporters

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to fund its work.

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CRY's ambition is for every young person to get the chance

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to be tested

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to prevent more tragic deaths,

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like Adam's

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or my teacher, Matt.

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This will only be possible with your help,

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so please give what you can today.

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To donate, go the website...

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To give by phone, call 0800 011 011.

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Calls are free from mobiles

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and landlines.

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You can also donate £10

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by texting...

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Texts cost £10, plus your

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standard network message charge.

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And the whole £10 goes to CRY.

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Full terms and conditions

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can be found at bbc.co.uk/lifeline.

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Or if you'd like to post a donation,

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please make your cheque payable

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to CRY and send it to...

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..writing CRY on the back

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of the envelope.

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And if you want the charity to claim

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Gift Aid on your donation,

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please include an e-mail

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or postal address, so that they can

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send you a Gift Aid form.

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Thank you.

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