THE diagnosis of his friend with Huntington's Disease has moved a Lanlivery man to run the London marathon.

This will be the first time Mark Steer, 48, has attempted the challenge but he has high hopes and his family is helping with the fundraising for the Huntington's Disease Association (HDA).

Mark, an adult learning disabilities service manager, decided to run after a family friend was diagnosed with Huntington's almost 10 years ago. Mark said: "We knew when the result came back that he and his wife would need their friends more than ever and we wanted to do something amazing to demonstrate our support for them as well as being just friends."

Mark's wife Carol who works in Fowey for Cornwall and Isles of Scilly Primary Care NHS Trust, said: "I was watching the London marathon in 2008, getting emotional and swept along and just shouted to Mark 'you could do that, you've run before'. He used to run 20 years ago but he was up to have a go."

The family's fund-raising got off to a blazing start when local author Patrick Gale came to a dinner party and book reading at the family's home and friends and family paid for the privilege of being there.

There has also been a lot of support from local businesses including Barnett Fare and Tregagles meat company. Huntington's Disease is a degenerative illness of the central nervous system causing dementia and severe physical incapacity.

Any child of an affected parent has a 50% risk of inheriting the affected gene. Anyone inheriting the gene will develop the disease – there is no known cure.

Anyone interested in donating can do so by logging on to www.justgiving.com/mark2010marathon