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My name is Audrey McColl
I am 44 years old and live near Crieff in Perthshire.
I have a condition called Long QT Syndrome which is a disturbance of the electrical system of the heart and is a type of familial arrhythmia.
My interest in Long QT is threefold- as someone who has lost a close relative to the condition, as a carer to two children with the condition and as a patient myself. |
Press Release
For my family, FANS is an extremely significant and exciting step forward. Had this vital resource been available when my brother required treatment, the outcome for him could have been very different.
FANS will make a real difference to arrhythmia sufferers. It will provide a platform to take arrhythmia diagnosis and support to a new level by offering gp’s and cardiologists clear referral pathways to the specialist help which is required. This, in turn, will lead to improved screening of family members and ultimately reduce the number of young people dying of sudden cardiac death and the associated trauma and heartache for the family”
“We owe a huge debt of gratitude to Dr Choy and her team whose hard work and dedication
have enabled FANS to become a reality.”
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| My story began in 2000 |
In a society |
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when my 37 year old brother, who appeared to be fit, active and healthy, died suddenly having suffered a cardiac arrhythmia. There was no network at the time and no clear referral pathways for gp’s/cardiologists to follow so he did not receive the specialist help and no screening was offered to the rest of the family after his death.
In 2007 I started to suffer symptoms of fainting and tiredness and thanks to my sharp eyed GP who noticed the prolonged qt interval on a heart taping and had the knowledge to refer me to Dr Choy, a specialist in arrhythmias, the ball was set in motion again.
I was diagnosed with Long QT syndrome and had an ICD(Implantable cardio- verter defibrillator) fitted in 2008.
My two children had a 50/50 chance of inheriting the condition and both children tested positive.
My mother was then screened also tested positive and had a pace-maker fitted last year.
My sixteen year old daughter is due to have a pace-maker fitted in Feb 2010.
My eight year old son will require a pace-maker in a few years time.
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where the NHS is much maligned, I can only say that over the last few years, my family have received the best of care from everyone involved in their treatment and we felt it was “pay back time” .
Mum and I organised a fund-raising event in October in Luncarty, near Perth. We both make hand-made cards and decided to put our hobby to good use and make them to raise funds for TICR (The Institute of Cwardiovascular Research),based at Ninewells Hospital in Dundee.
We held a Coffee and Cards afternoon selling Christmas cards and other greetings cards and encouraged people to forget the diets for the day and indulge in all the home-baked goodies!
Through the generous support of all our friends and family, we raised the fantastic sum of £2640. This was our way of expressing our appreciation for the excellent medical care we have received and will be used for vital arrhythmia research.
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