A mum whose son died suddenly of heart disease at the age of 24 is backing a campaign to make the public more aware of cardiac problems in the young.

Aaron Bass died suddenly in June last year.  A post-mortem revealed he had been suffering from Cardiomyopathy – a heart disease that runs in families.

Now his mother, Lynda Tyrrell, who lives in Buckfast Square, Corby, is backing the campaign which puts the number of tragic young deaths caused by cardiac arrests in the spotlight.

Linda said: “We had absolutely no idea anything was wrong with Aaron’s heart.  It was only after he died that I remember thinking he looked unwell the last time I saw him.”

Now Linda hopes the new campaign – called Cardiac Risk in the Young (CRY) – will help other families avoid the heartbreak she has suffered.

A few weeks after Aaron’s death his family and friends got together to stage a dance in his memory and set up a trust fund for his son and daughter.

The family is looking into the possibility of staging a memorial event each year to raise funds for the CRY campaign, which is supported by top heart specialist Professor Bill McKenna and leading sports personalities including Ian Botham, Nick Gillingham, Steve Redgrave, Rob Andrew and Mark Cox.

The campaign has several main aims which include:

• Raising awareness of cardiac risk in the young
• Funding the CRY centre for sports cardiology at the British Olympic Medical Centre
• Setting up a national screening programme
• Supporting medical research into sudden death
• Donating medical equipment to surgeries and hospitals

Campaign founder Alison Cox said: “Every week in the UK up to eight young people, who appeared to be fit and healthy die of undiagnosed heart conditions.”

Cry is the first national charity to introduce mobile cardiac screening for the young.

Former England cricketer Ian Botham, who has become the charity’s first honorary president, said: “We want all kids to have heart tests just as they do annually in Italy.  We must stop these terrible tragedies.”

CRY campaigners are recommending that young people should be screened if there has been a sudden death in the family or if they suffer from chest pains, breathlessness, palpitations, dizziness or fainting.

To date CRY campaigners and fundraisers have paid for 35 electro-cardiogram machines to be installed in surgeries, cardiac wards and accident and emergency departments.

The majority of sudden deaths in the young are due to inherited forms of heart muscle disorder and irregular heartbeat.