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Asthma UK

Chris Tarrant presents an appeal on behalf of Asthma UK, a charity which supports millions of people with asthma in the UK, and which funds research to help find a cure.

Who Wants to be a Millionaire? presenter Chris Tarrant presents an appeal on behalf of Asthma UK, a charity which provides vital support for the millions of people with asthma in the UK, and which funds groundbreaking research to help find a cure. Asthma UK is a charity close to Chris's heart as he has asthma himself.

The film features Stacian Gilbert, a 33-year-old Londoner whose life has been dominated by her asthma. She shares her experiences of how she lives with the constant threat of an attack ending her life, as it did her father's, but how - with the charity's help - she manages to live as full a life as possible. Her hope is that more medical research will one day find a cure.

10 minutes

Last on

Wed 25 Sep 2013 13:00

Donate Now

To find out more about Asthma UK please go to:

Or write to: Asthma UK, 18 Mansell Street, London, E1 8AA

Or call: 0300 222 5800

Chris Tarrant

Chris Tarrant

Imagine being paralysed by fear as you struggle to breathe, unable to speak, unable to ask for help. That鈥檚 what an asthma attack feels like.

I know all about this terrifying feeling of helplessness, because I have asthma. When I had an attack, I couldn鈥檛 get air into my lungs and I started to panic, convinced I was going to black out and maybe even die.

My asthma is fortunately now well-controlled. But today, three families will lose someone to asthma. Asthma UK is the charity dedicated to changing this.

This vital charity funds ground-breaking research which is unravelling the mysteries of asthma. But despite it being an all-too-common condition, asthma research is still sadly underfunded, and Asthma UK needs your help so that they can continue the search for more effective medicines.

I believe that everyone with asthma should have the opportunity to fulfill their potential, free from the fear of dying. With your help, this can happen.

Asthma UK

Asthma UK

Everyone knows someone with asthma 鈥 it affects one in five households in the UK. But not everyone knows that asthma is serious and can be fatal, even in people who only have 鈥榤ild鈥 asthma.

Over 1,100 people die each year from asthma in the UK, and a quarter of a million people have asthma so severe that current treatments don鈥檛 work for them.

Asthma UK is working towards a world where asthma is no longer a daily battle for some and where no-one dies from the condition. Asthma research can make this happen.

Asthma UK is the biggest voluntary funder of asthma research. We鈥檝e made major breakthroughs in developing knowledge and better treatments for asthma, but there鈥檚 still a long way to go. Asthma is a complex condition and everyone鈥檚 asthma is different, so there鈥檚 a lot we still don鈥檛 know and more work needs to be done if we are to find ways of preventing and curing the condition.

Asthma UK needs your help to keep funding research and giving hope to people affected by asthma. Donate today and help us find better treatments and, ultimately, a cure.

Stacian

Stacian

33 year old Stacian has severe asthma. As a young child she was extremely active and loved dancing. But after her diagnosis her life changed dramatically. Unlike most 10 year olds who could spend their time running around, Stacian鈥檚 activities were severely restricted, which left her feeling frustrated and isolated.

Stacey said, 鈥淚 just kept saying, I want to be normal. Why can鈥檛 I run like my brothers and sisters?鈥

Stacian鈥檚 asthma attacks had got considerably worse as she got older and it was when she reached her late 20鈥檚 that doctors told her that her next one could be fatal.

She said, 鈥淭hen I just started breaking down.听 I didn鈥檛 want to die because I hadn鈥檛 even enjoyed my life鈥.

Thankfully for Stacian, a new drug became available which has helped her improve her standard of life and given her hope for the future.

She said, 鈥淏efore I couldn鈥檛 do the normal daily activities of living, but then I could walk to the bus stop.听 I could get up and I could cook鈥.

Annette

Annette

Already living with asthma, mother of 6 Annette was already aware of what it was like to have an attack.听 So when her daughter Sophie was diagnosed with asthma at a young age, Annette sought medical assistance to ensure that Sophie鈥檚 condition could be managed.

Annette said, 鈥淎lways had lots of friends knocking on the door for her and loved to play out.听 She just lived life to the full鈥.

After the family decided to move areas, Sophie鈥檚 asthma quickly deteriorated and her attacks became more frequent, which saw her being admitted to hospital on a regular basis.

Annette said, 鈥淚t was just so hard to see her struggling for air in some ways and struggling to breathe鈥.

Sophie tragically passed away from an attack at the age of 9 and her younger daughter Leah has since been diagnosed with asthma.听 But Asthma UK have been able to provide a wide range of support and information to help the family look to the future.

鈥淎sthma UK have really helped us over the last few months, especially when we found their social media site through Facebook鈥.

Credits

Role Contributor
Presenter Chris Tarrant
Series Producer Alex Steinitz
Executive Producer Ruth Shurman

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