Touching Lives - November 2006

The event, which takes cyclists from Bristol and Bath to London, began in 1982. This year, cyclists ranged in age from twelve to 76, and sponsorship is hoped to total £75,000, adding to the staggering £850,000 raised by Action100 cyclists since the event began.

This year’s event boasted a glittering array of lady professionals and celebrities, as well as many Avanti customers, building on last year’s very successful Celebrity Am Golf Day which raised over £12,000.

This year’s impressive fundraising achievements mean Avanti are well on track to break their ambitious target of raising £50,000 for Action Medical Research by 2007.

Elbow fractures are very common, and in severe cases may cause an unstable elbow.This instability is difficult to treat and can mean pain, disability and even the early development of arthritis. Also, surgery for elbow fractures may itself lead to elbow instability, as damage may occur to elbow ligaments which hold the bones in position and provide stability to the joint.

You may recall reading about Dr Jane Warren’s study in Touching Lives last year. We reported on the exciting mid-way results of her research into aphasia — difficulty with speech and comprehension, often resulting from stroke. In fact, aphasia affects around a quarter of all stroke sufferers.

Professor Wolff has come a long way since his associations with Action Medical Research began; in 1983 we awarded him funding to establish the Institute of Bioengineering at Brunel — in a Portakabin! Heinz and his team worked from there for three years before relocating to a more permanent structure on the University’s campus.

Professor Wolff is a keen supporter of this charity, among many other things, simplifying science for our readers through his Jargon Busters column.

The Three Peaks Challenge (7th — 8th July) is an event for teams of four to six, including a driver. Adventurous supporters attempt to take the Charity’s mascot, Paddington Bear, to the top of the three highest mountains in Scotland, England and Wales in just 24 hours.

Teams are responsible for their own transport between the mountains — Ben Nevis, Scafell Pike and Snowdon — and must raise a minimum of £1,800 for Action Medical Research.

Event sponsor VT Shipbuilding showed their dedication to the cause with more than 30 employees taking part. Among them was Steve Kelsall, who took to the stage with his family to share his experiences of premature birth with Davina and the crowd. His eldest daughter, Olivia, was born three months early, weighing only 2lbs 4oz. Thankfully she is now a healthy and energetic five-year-old.

With no history of muscular or skeletal problems in his family, he sought help from doctors and physiotherapists, but it wasn’t until he was 21 that he got a diagnosis of muscular dystrophy — a progressive weakening and wasting of the muscles, and a condition for which there is currently no cure.

Mark is one of about 30,000 people in the UK living with a neuromuscular condition like muscular dystrophy. Some are affected as very young children but others, like Mark, have no symptoms at all until they reach adulthood.

There is no cure for the flu. It is a major cause of illness and its well-known symptoms can be extremely debilitating, even for the most resilient amongst us.

More vulnerable people, such as the elderly, are at risk of developing serious complications, including pneumonia, and sadly, many go on to lose their lives to the flu. In an average year it leads to around 1,000 deaths, but during the epidemic of 1989, 27,000 people died as a result of catching the flu.

This is an exciting new programme dedicated to targeted funding of medical advances in three core areas — Touching Tiny Lives, Stopping Suffering in Children and Preventing the Pain of Chronic Diseases and Conditions.

Our longest-established cycling event, Action100, deserves a special mention, as it celebrated its silver jubilee this year, marking 25 years of successful cycling for the Charity. In 2007 bike events will be even bigger and better. We hope to see many familiar Touching Lives readers — and some new ones too! — back in the saddle, taking action for medical research.

The last few months have provided Action Medical Research with a huge amount of publicity — nationally and locally — achieving a staggering half-a-million pounds in equivalent advertising value!

The thyroid gland — the body’s stoker

The thyroid gland is located, roughly speaking, in the bow tie position at the base of the neck, below the voice box. It produces a variety of hormones, of which thyroxine is the most important. Its chemical composition is known and it can now be made synthetically.

As a charity that demonstrates excellence in the way it fundraises, Action Medical Research has signed up to become a founder member of the FSB scheme. By doing so we are indicating that we adhere to the Institute of Fundraising’s Code of Fundraising Practice and the FSB Donors’ Charter, and that we have a robust system in place to handle any queries or complaints that may be raised by supporters or potential supporters.

How did you become involved in this area of medical research? I qualified as a doctor in Australia, began training as an ophthalmologist in 2000, and moved to England in 2004 to do a fellowship in cornea and external disease. This led to the PhD project I am working on during my research training fellowship.

Migraine is the most common neurological condition in the developed world, more widespread than diabetes, epilepsy and asthma combined. It affects more than 15 per cent of people in the UK, and, while some might only suffer one or two migraines in a year, others may have to deal with several migraine attacks a week, making everyday life and routine almost impossible. The World Health Organisation lists migraine among the top 20 most disabling lifetime conditions.

What exactly is Seasonal Affective Disorder? Seasonal affective disorder, or SAD, is a type of depression that affects people during the autumn and winter months. It is attributed to a lack of daylight, which is why symptoms begin to appear as the days are drawing in. Some people only exhibit mild symptoms, known as ‘winter blues’, but for those who suffer the more severe effects, it can be seriously debilitating and disruptive to daily life.

This work is so important, and so urgently needed. Every year a staggering one in ten of all babies in the UK — around 70,000 — need special medical care when they are born. Tragically, more than 3,000 babies die before they reach their first birthday, and premature birth is the single biggest cause. Many more have to cope with cerebral palsy, learning difficulties or other problems for the rest of their lives. Doctors still do not fully understand what causes premature birth, and as yet there are no effective treatments to prevent premature labour.

Many of us associate spinal cord injury with paralysis — the loss of the use of our arms or legs, or even both.

But recent research has shown that many of the 40,000 people living with this kind of injury actually consider bowel incontinence the most devastating consequence of damaging their spine, rating it as having a greater impact on quality of life than losing the ability to walk.

How did you first hear about Action Medical Research? I’ve been involved for so long now that it’s hard to remember. It would either have been through my career in nursing, or the Guildford Club for the Disabled, for whom I volunteered for many years.

Why made you decide to support the Charity? My mother was an active member of the Shaftsbury Society Home in Bournemouth, so I had been around disabled children as a child. Action Medical Research was working hard to help such children at the time.