Leeds woman running London Marathon in memory of her dad
A Leeds woman is running the London Marathon today in memory of her dad who passed away from Huntington’s Disease a few years ago
Amber Edwards is an academic skills tutor at Leeds Beckett University and has been training for the marathon since before the Covid-19 pandemic.
She said: “It’s felt like it’s been a long time coming which I think has made it more emotional.
“I’ve done all the training, all the fundraising’s done and it’s finally here so it feels really emotional at the minute.”
She will be running to raise money for the Huntington’s Disease Association and has already surpassed her target of £2500 before the race has even started.
Huntington’s Disease is caused by a faulty gene in your DNA and it affects your body’s nervous system.
Amber is passionate about raising money and awareness for the illness in memory of her father’s past and in hopes of progress for the future.
She discovered she is one of many people in UK who has the faulty gene and will develop symptoms in the future.
People with Huntington’s Disease can live for a long time with no signs of symptoms.
They can start at any age but between the ages of 30 and 50 is the most common time.
Amber said: “it’s a bit like Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s put together and it affects your movement, the way your mind works, your speech and everything else to do with that.
“Once symptoms start to progress, they gradually get worse, and you tend to die typically between 15 and 20 years later.
“There’s no cure for it at the minute, only treatment to keep you more comfortable.”
You can donate to Amber’s fundraiser here.