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Nick’s run to conquer meningitis

01.03.11

DARLINGTON dad Nick Cordery will be running for a cause close to his heart after meningitis left both himself and his daughter battling for their lives.

The 36-year-old is preparing for the Bath Half Marathon on March 6, when he will be raising money for Meningitis UK and its vaccine research work.

Nick's three-year-old daughter Sophia fell ill in September with the deadly disease but was thankfully treated just in time and has now made a good recovery.

He also remembers being very ill with meningitis himself aged nine or 10, which is spurring him on for the 13.3 mile challenge.

Nick, who works for WYG Engineering in Newcastle, said: "We feel very lucky that both Sophia and myself have made full recoveries from this awful disease. We know that many others are not so fortunate.

"Running for Meningitis UK is a cause very close to my heart as it funds vaccine research. I hope that one day this illness will be resigned to the history books and no other families will have to go through the terrible ordeal and distress it brings."

Nick remembers how Sophia, then aged two, initially seemed under the weather. As Nick was just recovering from the flu himself, he and wife Wendy thought Sophia was falling ill with the same thing.

But when she started vomiting that evening they took her to the NHS walk-in clinic where they tested for a water infection.

The results were negative so Nick and Wendy were advised to take Sophia to their GP in the morning.

Nick said: "Sophia seemed a little better in the morning but she'd developed a light rash which didn't disappear when a glass was pressed to it.

"The doctor was concerned but, because she was a bit happier and able to eat her breakfast, suggested we brought her back in the afternoon.

"By that time she really was quite poorly and getting very lethargic and sickly. She was complaining of joint pain and wasn't happy."

Sophia was admitted to see a paediatrician at Darlington Memorial Hospital, who took one look at her and immediately suspected meningococcal septicaemia.

Nick and Wendy were warned that she would get even more poorly and she was moved to intensive care for treatment.

Nick said: "She got worse very suddenly and they had to sedate her and put in tubes to help her breathe before rushing her up to the specialist unit in Newcastle.

"It was a long night but in the morning she was able to come off the machine and breathe on her own.

"I think we got her to hospital in the nick of time."

Tests were inconclusive as to what strain of meningitis Sophia had but doctors were certain she had meningococcal septicaemia, which is caused when the meningitis B bacteria enter the blood stream and multiply uncontrollably, poisoning the blood and completely overwhelming the immune system.

After a week in hospital she was allowed home and has since made a full recovery, much to everyone's relief.

All money raised through Nick's Bath Half Marathon efforts will go towards Meningitis UK's Search 4 a Vaccine Campaign, which aims to make £7million to fund vital research into developing a vaccine against Meningitis B – the most common form of the disease in the UK.

He will be part of the Meningitis Musketeers team, with the motto 'All 4 One and One 4 All' – to highlight the devastating fact that meningitis can kill in under four hours.

Meningitis UK's Chief Executive Steve Dayman said "Nick's running efforts are really remarkable. What happened to Sophia shows how quickly meningitis can strike and with little warning, which highlights the importance of finding a vaccine for this dreadful disease.

"We're very thankful to Nick and all our Meningitis Musketeers for taking part in the Bath Half Marathon and we hope they enjoy what should be a great day.

"Every penny raised will go towards our single focus – to find a vaccine to eradicate meningitis. Continued support from the public is so important in enabling us to continue our vital work.

"Our ultimate goal is to spare people the heartache thousands of families have suffered by losing a loved one to meningitis."

To sponsor Nick, please visit http://www.justgiving.com/nick-cordery

For more information on meningitis, or to support Meningitis UK's Search 4 a Vaccine Campaign, please call 0117 373 73 73 or visit www.meningitisuk.org.