Please note that the event date has been changed to 09 Jan 2011.

Thanks for taking the time to visit my JustGiving page.

Just over a year ago we lost our son Riyan; following his passing it took the coroner 3-4 months to conclude that Riyan had Infantile Dilated Cardiomyopathy. However it still remains a mystery as to how Riyan had a form of the illness; all tests carried out were inconclusive!

Riyan was born healthy and remained healthy for 5 weeks showing no signs of sickness until one day he suddenly fell ill and so began the worst week of mine and Ekta’s life. Riyan battled hard against cardiomyopathy for a week until his body could not cope with the condition any longer.

Cardiomyopathy is the poor condition of heart muscle that affects 1 in 500 of the population and is the number one cause of sudden death in those aged under 35. In Riyans case little was known on how to treat this illness as the doctors treating Riyan simply did not know what was wrong with him!

When we found out that Riyan had a form of Cardiomyopathy we were introduced to an organisation called the Cardiomyopathy Association (CMA). It was through this organisation that we learnt more about Cardiomyopathy and how limited treatments are for various forms of the illness. CMA provides information and support to affected families; helps educate health professionals about the condition and campaigns for medical and government action. From our experience there is still a long way to go especially treating babies with this condition, more research and expertise is required to treat Cardiomyopathy!

I’m therefore raising money to support the CMA by taking part in the Edwinstowe  Christmas 10K Forest Trail Race. All contributions no matter how big or small would be very much appreciated.

Kal