This is my niece and James's daughter Summer, she has Rett Syndrome.

She was born showing no signs of any issues and came home from the hospital like any other healthy little girl, she is now 2 and a half and is unable to walk, talk, feed herself, or do anything that a normal 2 year old would take for granted. If this isn't bad enough she also has breathing difficulties and the prospect of having seizures in the near future. Surprisingly Summer has no brain damage, she has a missing protein that would make her brain function normally.

 

If she is lucky enough to make it into adulthood she will require one to one, 24 hour a day care for the rest of her life but the possibility of curing and providing treatment for little girls just like Summer is becoming increasingly possible. In 2007, the symptoms of Rett Syndrome disappeared in a fully mature mouse. Much more research is needed to determine whether the reversal is possible in humans, which is why we need to raise as much money as possible!

 

To help change the future for Summer on Saturday 7th July, myself and James will be riding bicycles from Lands End to John O'Groats. We are going to complete this challenge in 14 days with one goal; to raise as much money as possible, this challenge is a big challenge for keen cyclist, and it is huge for James and myself as we are not even novices. Please dig deep and sponsor us so that we can make Summers life full of fun and laughter!