The mother of a Waterside teenager who died from an undetected heart complaint today urged everyone in the city to get checked out. 

Maura Hegarty, from Curryneirin, who lost her 19-year-old son, Brendan, in 2003, gave her backing to the first cardiac screening event to be staged in Derry. 

The charity Cardiac Risk in the Young will stage the first in a series of screenings at the Magee campus of the University of Ulster on Saturday, February 14. 

The group today encouraged all members of the public to come along and get screened. 

Backing the call, Ms Hegarty said today: "The loss of a young person due to a heart condition is a tragedy and it is all the worse if it could have been avoided through detection by screening." 

Since Brendan's death, the Hegarty family have established a summer football tournament in his memory. 

In September, Maura's daughter, Louise, completed a sponsored bungee jump to raise funds for CRY.  To date they have raised around £1,000. 

Although the fundraising is vitally important, Maura said she believed that it is essential families throughout the North West have the opportunity to get screened at the Derry Clinic. 

"We are very pleased that CRY is able to offer screening here in the North West for the first time - it is convenient and it is a very welcome development.  It means that families can get screened without the difficulty of travelling to Belfast. 

"It is an important service for the local community and we encourage families to come and get screened." 

CRY has been offering a heart screening programme in Belfast since 2007.  Since then, almost 2,500 people between the ages of 14 and 35 have been screened. 

The charity estimates that 12 young people die each week across the UK and Northern Ireland from undiagnosed cardiac conditions. 

The CRY clinic provides a simple heart screen that lasts no more than a few minutes and costs £35, yet it can potentially save the life of anyone who has an undiagnosed heart condition. 

Manager of the CRY clinic, John Carruthers, said today: "We would encourage as many people as possible to get screened. 

"Although in the past there have been high profile deaths associated with people active in sport, screening should be considered by everyone.  We are delighted that this clinic is visiting Derry and we hope it will be the first of many such visits." 

Individuals wishing to book a screening should go online to the CRY website: www.c-r-y.org.uk/ecg.htm

To book group screenings, you can contact the clinic directly on 028 903 68098; email: uuclinic@ulster.ac.uk