‘Terrible diagnosis’ spurs Horsham wonder mum into action

And it’s all in a good cause. The Horsham mum will be stepping out again to help youngsters like her son Austin following a ‘terrible diagnosis’ that he was suffering from a rare genetic condition.

Maxine will be taking part in the Surrey Half Marathon on March 10 followed by the Brighton Marathon on April 14 to raise money for a charity known as Harrison’s Fund in aid of research into Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy.

She remembers only too well the moment that her son Austin - now five - was diagnosed with the condtion. “Austin had always been a challenging baby, he cried and screamed a lot of the time. We put this down to him having colic and tummy problems. He was a very late walker and didn’t really speak until he was three years old but never in our wildest dreams had we expected such a terrible diagnosis,” she said.

“Each year Austin’s life changes. Now he is five we attend lots of hospital appointments for speech therapy, physiotherapy, occupational therapy and most importantly his medical trial which takes him to hospital every week for an infusion of medicine. We are family ambassadors for Harrison’s Fund and it is important for us to play an active role in supporting the charity and raising as much money and awareness as possible.”

Maxine is hoping to raise £2,000 which will go towards the charity’s work funding research into Duchenne - a rare genetic condition which affects all the muscles in the body, causing them to waste away.

Harrison’s Fund’s goal is to get as much money as possible into the hands of the world’s best researchers, who are working to find a cure.

Harrison’s Fund spokeswoman Laura Morgan said: “We are so grateful to the ongoing support from Maxine and her family for the last few years. Whether it’s organising their own fundraising events, taking part in challenges like these marathons or just helping us spread the word about our work, they’ve been amazing.”

To support Maxine visit: https://brightonmarathon2019.everydayhero.com/uk/max

Harrison’s Fund was set up in 2012 by Alex and Donna Smith, in response to their son Harrison being diagnosed with Duchenne.