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HD stands for Huntington's Disease, a fatal genetic disease as a result of a faulty gene inherited by your parent. Each child of a person who has HD has a 50/50 (1 in 2) chance of having the faulty gene passed down to them. If they are found to not carry the gene, there is no way the gene can skip or be passed down again.

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Huntington's Disease if often described as Alzheimer's, Parkinson's and Motor Nerone Disease joining forces and working simultaneously. There is currently no cure for HD.

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The early signs can be noticed either from the age of 2 to 20 resulting in the diagnosis of Juvenile Huntington's Disease or in our prime age anything before or after 30 to 50 years old or later. All a doctor can tell you is if you carry the faulty gene, unfortunately they can't predict when the signs of the illness will begin.

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Symptoms can vary between families and individual members but often come down to three areas of deterioration:

- Difficulties with movement

-Changes in behaviour or temperament / personality

Difficulties with thinking and or planning

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Anyone suffering with Huntington's Disease will deteriorate slowly over a period of time. Often it is mistaken for types of dementia if there has been no previous family history of the disease documented. 

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If you or you think someone you love may have Huntington's Disease, please go and see a GP or seek support from www.hda.org.uk .

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