In December last year Felix, my best friend from university's three year old son, was diagnosed with Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy, a muscle wasting disease that confines children to a wheelchair by the time they're 12 and usually kills them in their mid-20's. Whilst there's currently no known cure, there is real progress being made in the development of treatments that will, for the first time, alter the disease and give children like Felix a shot at a much fuller and longer life. Needless to say, research into these treatments costs a fortune, which is where this event and, hopefully, you come in.

On 6th June I will be doing the 3 Peaks challenge. 3 mountains in 3 days, travelling on my own but being guided by 3 very good friends to raise money for the Duchenne Childrens Trust (www.dc-trust.org). DCT is a charity set up by the parents of Eli, a six year old who also has the "imbalance". To date they've raised over £2 m and have funded incredibly important research in Europe and the US into ground-breaking treatments that, once approved and released, will have lasting benefits for thousands of children worldwide.

With every second that passes Duchenne children deteriorate so the faster a cure's found, the less damage is done and the better life will be for thousands of children. We therefore need to make these treatments happen as soon as possible so please be as generous as you can with your sponsorship.