900,000 victims

BARRY is among 900,000 people in the UK who are affected by heart failure.

It occurs when the organ fails to pump enough blood around the body at the right pressure, because the muscle has become too weak or stiff to work properly.

It is a debilitating condition – causing breathlessness, extreme tiredness and even death.

For most sufferers, it is a longterm condition that cannot be cured and is managed with medication such as betablockers. In the most serious cases, a heart transplant may be required.

Most of the time heart failure does not have one single cause, but is the result of a number of factors including high blood pressure, coronary heart disease, an abnormal rhythm or weak heart muscles.