I am running in the Nottingham Marathon on 13 September 2009 for a charity relevant to my eldest Sister, Yvonne.
Over ten years ago, whilst Yvonne was on her annual holiday with her family in , she collapsed very suddenly. After spending time in and Edinburgh Royal Infirmaries she was diagnosed with an aortic aneurysm (swelling of the artery leading from the heart). A major operation, followed by many months in intensive care and further convalescence, were needed to fix the problem. Back in , she had an artificial aortic valve fitted along with over 30 cms of prosthetic artery during a 16 hour operation.
The incredible skill of the surgeons in and then in gave Yvonne a further 10 years of active life. In those intervening years, Yvonne successfully regained her health and normality in her life.
She and her family were incredibly pleased when less than a year ago she was told that she no longer needed regular check-ups to monitor her condition and was discharged from the hospital clinic. It obviously came as a massive shock when Yvonne, whilst shopping, collapsed suddenly and died of heart failure at the beginning of this year, aged 58. The heart failure was due to the rupture of another aortic aneurysm which had suddenly appeared.
Yvonne’s eldest daughter, Samantha, is running for the same charity in the Half Marathon which is run at the same time as the . Samantha detests running but feels that this is her way of raising money in memory of her Mother. This is her first ‘race’ of any kind never mind a Half Marathon. This will be my third full .
Yvonne’s family stay in Nottingham and have chosen this charity because the money raised is for extra funding for the Surgical Unit at the Hospital which helped give Yvonne an extra 10 years of active life. This is their way of thanking the Surgeons and Nursing Staff.
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