Steve’s story
I’m running the Great Grimsby 10K….. “Why?” I hear you ask….
Arteriovenous malformation is an abnormal connection between arteries and veins, bypassing the capillary system. This vascular anomaly is widely known because of its occurrence in the central nervous system (usually cerebral AVM), but can appear in any location.
My wife, Lauren, suffers with a rare condition called AVM located in the heel and arch of her right foot. The AVM was undetected until 2018 when she started to experience pain, swelling and changing of the skin in the heel area.
Lauren’s foot has ulcerated more than once and the ulcers have caused intense pain and taken over a year to heal properly.
Lauren has had numerous procedures including angiograms and sclerotherapy treatment to try and help with management.
However, Lauren’s AVM cannot be cured and amputation is almost a certain for the future.
In March 2026, Lauren and I travelled to the Royal Free Hospital in London for Lauren to receive treatment from a specialist in her condition.
We are still unsure what, if any, positive impact this may have as recovery is much slower and harder this time around.
Lauren also suffered an arterial bleed straight after surgery which complicated recovery further.
AVM’s are a rare abnormality believed to be in under 1% of the population. They are largely underfunded and under-researched. We want to try and raise awareness as much as possible for this fantastic cause and our journey to doing that starts with this 10k race.
We appreciate times are very hard at the moment but anything you could donate, whether it be little or large, will go towards research into AVM.
Please share across all your socials, with family and friends…
Together we can make a change 🦋
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