Four NHS heart specialists from the East of England last weekend gave up their spare time to walk up Mount Snowdon to raise awareness of heart failure in the region.

The team, working with the national heart failure charity Pumping Marvellous, chose Wales’ highest peak to draw attention to the fact that more than 21,000 people in the East of England are living with undiagnosed heart failure.

Early detection and proper treatment of heart disease can significantly improve people’s quality of life.

Breathlessness, fatigue and swollen ankles are the most common symptoms of heart failure.

Unfortunately, the team’s climb coincided with Storm Amy’s arrival in the UK, creating treacherous conditions.

This meant that while the team battled the elements to get to within touching distance of their goal, the high winds and poor visibility ultimately forced them to turn back just 200 metres from the summit.

Mansi Khadia, quality improvement project officer from the team and who was on the walk said:

“Climbing Snowdon felt like the perfect metaphor – living with heart failure is tough, especially when it’s undiagnosed, but with the right support and awareness, it’s something we can overcome.

“We were getting increasingly buffeted by the high winds, we were all soaked to the skin, but we believed it was worth all the effort to raise awareness of this life-threatening condition.

“The decision to turn back was really hard, but not as hard as living with an undiagnosed heart condition, which can really affect your quality of life, and how long you live.”

The challenge has generated overwhelming support from across the cardiac community, with cardiologists, surgeons, cardiac rehabilitation colleagues, and clinical directors all backing the initiative.

So far, over £2,000 has been raised by the team which will be used to raise awareness of the symptoms and treatment of heart failure amongst the public.

Their work includes regional outreach, webinars delivered in partnership with Health Innovation East, and targeted social media content to spread awareness of heart failure symptoms and treatment options.

“This is just the beginning,” Mansi emphasised. “The walk helped us shine a light on heart failure, but now we’re focused on action.

“Our goal is to reduce the heart failure detection gap by five per cent – representing thousands of people who could receive earlier, more effective treatment.”

The team is still raising money for its work and members of the public can make donations through the Pumping Marvellous website.

Anyone with concerns about heart failure can find out more on the nhs.uk website.

Notes to editors

•  Heart failure affects approximately 920,000 people in the UK.
• The East of England cardiac clinical network estimates over 21,000 people in the region are living with undiagnosed heart failure.
• The team’s fundraising total currently stands at over £2,100.