Heart transplant patient walks UK coastline
A heart transplant patient is walking 5,000 miles around the coastline of Britain to raise money for the British Heart Foundation and help fund life-saving research.
Kieran Sandwell, 45 from Berkhamsted in Hertfordshire decided to take on the challenge to mark the end of his long battle with heart disease after having a heart transplant eight years ago.
He was born with a congenital heart condition and had to have open heart surgery at just three years old to swap the arteries back to their normal position. Despite having a normal childhood, when he was 13 he suffered a heart attack and during his early 20s he also suffered two mini strokes and began having abnormal heart rhythms called arrhythmias. By the time he reached 35, he was in end-stage heart failure and was put on the transplant list for a new heart.
In July 2009, Kieran received his new heart and donated his old heart for BHF-funded research into congenital heart disease which has contributed to important findings and helped others living with conditions like his. He has now had a new lease of life and set himself the challenge of raising £100,000 for the BHF by walking the coast of Britain over the next year.
The Trail of Two Hearts begins from the British Heart Foundation’s Head Office in Mornington Crescent on Wednesday 1 February and will walk anti-clockwise around the coast. On his journey, Kieran will be met and supported by BHF-funded researchers from across the UK, fundraising groups and branches and shop staff and volunteers.
To donate to help save even more lives visit www.atrailoftwohearts.com
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