A PIONEERING screening programme to identify heart conditions in the young – set up in memory of a talented Rugby man who died suddenly due to an undiagnosed condition – is returning next month.
Anthony Lane died in 2022 at the age of 26 when he suffered a cardiac arrest while exercising.
Anthony Lane, right, with parents Paul and Penny, and siblings Richard and Kat.
Now his dad Paul is putting on the third cardiac screening day in his son’s memory, having potentially saved three lives by identifying potential heart conditions at previous events.
Paul, a former President of Wylde Green Rotary Club in Sutton Coldfield, has secured Rotary grants and headed up money-raising campaigns to fund the initiative.
He said: “One Saturday morning, Anthony was on his turbo trainer bike at home, exercising alone. His partner returned home after shopping to find him unresponsive on the floor. West Midlands Ambulance Service and the Air Ambulance attended but unfortunately Anthony had already passed away.
“It is believed Anthony had an undiagnosed heart condition from which he had no symptoms. It is likely that Anthony’s heart ‘short-circuited’ and went into a lethal arrhythmia called ventricular fibrillation that causes sudden cardiac death if not treated immediately with CPR and defibrillation.”
Anthony was a talented mechanical engineer who landed his dream job at Mercedes F1 in Northamptonshire.
Anthony was a talented mechanical engineer who landed his dream job at Mercedes F1 in Northamptonshire.
His death led his family to the Cardiac Risk in the Young (CRY) charity, which works to prevent young sudden cardiac deaths through awareness, screening and research, and which supports affected families.
Paul said: “We learned more about the research they’re doing and their lobbying of politicians to try and get the UK government to test young people between the ages of 14 and 34.”
Paul added: “They say events happen for a reason, and Anthony’s passing away and our work with CRY has given us the ability to organise the screening session, which we’re hoping we can do long term, and at the end of that we may have saved a young person’s life.”
The screening day at Sutton Coldfield Town FC, which will be attended by Anthony’s friends and family, takes place on Sunday June 14 – the third in what is hoped will be of many for the area.
CRY CEO Dr Steven Cox said: “It’s wonderful to see the impact that Paul’s remarkable efforts to raise awareness and funds in memory of his son Anthony continues to have.
“Hosting a screening event in June will offer at least another 100 young people the opportunity to have their heart tested and help us in one of the charity’s defining aims to identify more young people who may be at risk of ‘hidden heart conditions’ and ensure they are referred for appropriate investigations.
“One in every 300 people of those tested by CRY will be identified with a potentially life-threatening condition. So, campaigns like these really do save lives.”
Paul, who now lives in Lichfield, said: “Anthony was a perfectly healthy young person who, like all young people, didn’t go to the doctor and who thought he was invincible. One minute he was perfectly fit on his turbo trainer, the next minute he’s gone.
“It is so tragic that this happened but we like to think of this project as a lasting memorial to him.”
To register for the screening day, visit https://tinyurl.com/77dp46uf and enter the password ‘BlowTorch’.
