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Log inShirley: Heart disease survivor part of cure search
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Shirley: Heart disease survivor part of cure search
by Outspoken on Tue Aug 19, 2008 6:36 am
Shirley: Heart disease survivor part of cure search
By Diana Bowley
Staff Writer Bangor Daily News
SHIRLEY, Maine - Jeannette Morrill is optimistic researchers will find a cure during her lifetime for pulmonary hypertension, a disease that affects the heart, but if they don’t, she wants to make sure a cure will be there for others.
Morrill, who has lived with the disease for 33 years and is the country’s longest living survivor of it, is working tirelessly for the Maine Pulmonary Hypertension Association to sponsor the Maine "Swinging for a Cure" Golf Tournament and the Pulmonary Hypertension forum on Sept. 13 at Sable Oaks Golf Course in South Portland.
"The event’s goal is to raise awareness of pulmonary hypertension and to fund research for a cure," Morrill said Monday. The first fundraising tournament, held last year, raised more than $12,000, she said.
Pulmonary hypertension is a simplified name for a complex health problem — continuous high blood pressure in the pulmonary artery in the lungs, resulting in an enlarged heart which can also lose its ability to pump," Morrill said. There is no cure.
Morrill said that in 1985 patients had a 50 percent chance of surviving 2.8 years past their date of diagnosis, but thanks to new treatments, prognosis is improving. Many people are unaware they have the disease, she said. PHA’s goal is to provide hope to the pulmonary hypertension community through support, education, advocacy and awareness.
Morrill was able to attend the international pulmonary hypertension conference held June 20-22, in Houston, Texas, where she served as a peer for those on or considering the use of Remodulin, the drug that keeps her alive. While working her booth, Morrill said, a woman whose 19-year-old daughter had been diagnosed recently with the disease approached her. When Morrill told her she has had the disease for 33 years, the woman "broke down in tears and just hugged me and said she was so pleased to meet me. It truly gave her hope," Morrill said.
The conference drew 1,600 people from around the world who either suffer from the disease or who are caregivers who wanted to learn more about the disease. The disease’s victims range in age from 1 to the late 70s, she said. Morrill said she met a woman from England who has survived the disease for 32 years, nearly as long as Morrill has.
http://bangornews.com/news/t/news.aspx?articleid=168576&zoneid=500
By Diana Bowley
Staff Writer Bangor Daily News
SHIRLEY, Maine - Jeannette Morrill is optimistic researchers will find a cure during her lifetime for pulmonary hypertension, a disease that affects the heart, but if they don’t, she wants to make sure a cure will be there for others.
Morrill, who has lived with the disease for 33 years and is the country’s longest living survivor of it, is working tirelessly for the Maine Pulmonary Hypertension Association to sponsor the Maine "Swinging for a Cure" Golf Tournament and the Pulmonary Hypertension forum on Sept. 13 at Sable Oaks Golf Course in South Portland.
"The event’s goal is to raise awareness of pulmonary hypertension and to fund research for a cure," Morrill said Monday. The first fundraising tournament, held last year, raised more than $12,000, she said.
Pulmonary hypertension is a simplified name for a complex health problem — continuous high blood pressure in the pulmonary artery in the lungs, resulting in an enlarged heart which can also lose its ability to pump," Morrill said. There is no cure.
Morrill said that in 1985 patients had a 50 percent chance of surviving 2.8 years past their date of diagnosis, but thanks to new treatments, prognosis is improving. Many people are unaware they have the disease, she said. PHA’s goal is to provide hope to the pulmonary hypertension community through support, education, advocacy and awareness.
Morrill was able to attend the international pulmonary hypertension conference held June 20-22, in Houston, Texas, where she served as a peer for those on or considering the use of Remodulin, the drug that keeps her alive. While working her booth, Morrill said, a woman whose 19-year-old daughter had been diagnosed recently with the disease approached her. When Morrill told her she has had the disease for 33 years, the woman "broke down in tears and just hugged me and said she was so pleased to meet me. It truly gave her hope," Morrill said.
The conference drew 1,600 people from around the world who either suffer from the disease or who are caregivers who wanted to learn more about the disease. The disease’s victims range in age from 1 to the late 70s, she said. Morrill said she met a woman from England who has survived the disease for 32 years, nearly as long as Morrill has.
http://bangornews.com/news/t/news.aspx?articleid=168576&zoneid=500
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Plato (427-347 BC)
Plato (427-347 BC)
