Hi my name is Darren I’m 27 years old and I have Cystic Fibrosis, I'm number 42 in the picture. 

Cystic Fibrosis is the ’s most common, life threatening, inherited disease and affects vital organs in the body, especially the lungs and pancreas by literally clogging them with thick, sticky mucus making it hard to breathe and digest food.

The average age for people with CF is 31 so being 27 now I hope I’m above average!  Having Cystic Fibrosis has its ups and downs you get to meet lots of new friends and interesting people with CF through the various charities and hospitals visited but unfortunately with that you also end up losing many.

 

When I was younger my Mum used to take me swimming with my older sister Penny and 4 other friends who also had CF; swimming is good for exercising your lungs that’s why we started – sadly Penny and the 4 friends that I swam with then have all died and those days are long gone now, however the memories are still there.

It’s great to see the CF TRUST looking after people with CF and working hard to find a cure, hopefully this can be found soon so that the babies being born today with Cystic Fibrosis can have a much brighter future than my sister and our ‘swimming crew’ ever had.

With the help of my friends and family I’m looking to run the Great South Run in Portsmouth which is 10 miles all in aid of the CF Trust to raise money for gene therapy which will help stop lung damage and hopefully find the CURE that’s needed, the CF Trust needs £8 million a year to fund it's vital work so every penny received will be vital in achieving this goal.

There are 9 people running the Great South Run with me and they are Steven Williams, John and Dave Lane, Tim Cox, James Massey, Ben Sears, Darren Edwards, Rachel Wheeler and Jo Whittaker.  We have all been training hard and hope to complete the course in a good time so if you are in the Portsmouth area on the 22^nd October look out for us all in our “Team CF” fluorescent green running vests and cheer us on!

All donations will be gratefully received, no matter how small, every penny makes a difference!

Many thanks for your support,

Darren

A few facts on Cystic Fibrosis...

There are currently over 7,500 CF patients in the of which 50% are under 15 and 70% under 20 with the average life expectancy of 31 years.  Since the 1960’s the average life expectancy of CF patients has increased 5 years with improved treatment and management of CF.

1 person in 25 is a carrier of the faulty CF gene – that’s more then 2.3 million people in the – If both parents are carriers there is a one in four chance of the child being born with CF.

The Cystic Fibrosis Trust needs to raise £8 million every year to fund its vital work, the Trust funds medical and scientific research aimed towards understanding, treating and curing Cystic Fibrosis. It also aims to ensure that people with CF receive the best possible care and support in all aspects of their lives.

The CF Trust-funded research leads the field in the search for a cure. The research also addresses the serious symptoms and complications of the disease, which include infection, inflammation, malnutrition, liver failure and osteoporosis.

On average each week five babies are born with Cystic Fibrosis and three young lives are lost to Cystic Fibrosis. 

Links

www.cftrust.org.uk - CF Trust 

www.cfww.org - CF worldwide 

http://www.cfwristbands.co.uk/ - CF Wristbands site 

Donating through this site is simple, fast and totally secure. It is also the most efficient way to sponsor me: Cystic Fibrosis Trust will receive your money faster and, if you are a UK taxpayer, an extra 28% in tax will be added to your gift at no cost to you.