A HILLSBOROUGH couple whose toddler son has been diagnosed with an incurable muscle wasting disease hope a sponsored parachute jump due to take place at the start of the summer will boost their newly launched campaign to fund essential research into the condition.
Sam McCausland with his brother Callum who is five, his parents Tracy and William and grandparents Sam and Patricia Letters.
Ironically, the first signs little Sam McCausland was suffering from the terminal disorder Muscular Dystrophy were picked up by doctors monitoring his health after he successfully battled meningitis at the neo-natal unit of Belfast's Royal Victoria Hospital during the first few weeks of his life.
William and Tracy McCausland who will be among those taking part in the parachute jump on June 14 have launched their campaign called 'Please Fix Sam' while still waiting to find out exactly what form of the condition their little boy is suffering from.
However, they know without vital funding it will be impossible to build on real progress which has been made in the battle against the disease during the last few years.
They hope their campaign will raise £500,000 as well as increase public and political awareness of a condition which currently claims the lives of many young men by the end of their teens or early 20's.
William and Tracy are only too aware of what the future holds for Sam if sufficient funding is not raised to find a way of alleviating the condition.
They explained boys suffering from 'Duchene' the most common form of muscular dystrophy typically lose the power in their legs first and end up in wheelchairs before their 10th birthdays.
Publicity material about 'Please Fix Sam' states: "As their muscles waste further they become quadriplegic. The disease also attacks the lungs and the muscles of the heart and they end up reliant on ventilators, feeding tubes and heart support systems."
The couple said the 'chronic lack of funding' for vital research into Muscular Dystrophy must change. If not, they added, boys like their little son affected by the disease will 'run out of time'.
The parachute jump will take place at Garvagh and will involve tandem jumps from 13,000 feet while anyone brave enough can go solo from 3000 feet.
Those taking part must be aged 16 to 80 and a stamped doctor's note is required for anyone above the age of 40.
Anyone wishing to participate in the parachute jump should e-mail info@pleasefixsam.com
See also
'A Mother's Despair' and
'The terrible reality of living with MD'The full article contains 417 words and appears in n/a newspaper.
