Having lost their beloved family member Michael, the Bowe family are backing the Mater Foundation’s fundraising campaign to upgrade heart screening equipment.
Michael Bowe originally went to his GP about flu-like symptoms, and was completely shocked, when two days later he was informed that he needed a heart transplant.
Michael, who was aged just 24, was told that he had cardiomyopathy, a condition in which the heart becomes enlarged, thick or rigid.
This was a huge shock for the Bowe family, back in September 2000.
Michael had his heart transplant in February 2001, but his body rejected his heart, and he died suddenly three years later. It was a terrible shock to a family which had already experienced tragedy in 1998, when Michael’s younger sister was killed in a car crash.
His brother Damien, a well-known singer who lives in Timahoe, says he has heard of many families who have lost a loved-one, which he believes could be prevented if heart screening was more readily available.
Michael’s family were later tested for heart problems by the Mater Hospital’s Family Heart Screening Clinic.
The clinic checks families of those who have been affected by or who have lost loved ones to cardiac conditions, including Sudden Adult/Arrhythmic Death Syndrome (SADS).
Breda Bowe, Michael’s mother, now aged 64, was diagnosed with cardiomyopathy following the screening, and had a defibrillator fitted.
Michael’s younger brother Fintan, now aged 23, was also found to have the condition and is now on medication for it. Damien and his father Pat, however, were given the all-clear, as were Damien’s three young sons, Iarlaith aged two, Ruairi five, and six-year-old Patrick, who were screened at the clinic in recent months.
Breda also underwent genetic testing which revealed that she is the gene carrier of the deficiency that leads to cardiomyopathy.
“We were like the first guinea pigs,” Damien said of the testing, which was all provided by the Mater Foundation.
Damien believes his brother Fintan would have been at risk of dying from SADS, were it not for the screening.
He believes the screening saved the lives of his mother and brother. He adds that knowing that their three children have been screened is a massive reassurance to himself and his wife Anne-Marie. “It is like a safety net for us,” he said.
Sports Club screening
Damien believes it would be ideal if every sports club could provide screening, as well as raising awareness of the condition.
“It would be great, for example, if every GAA club that has young children playing had screening in place,” he said.
The Bowes are completely behind this year’s Heart Appeal to raise €95,000 for the purchase of a new ECHO machine for the clinic.
This technology will provide much clearer images of the heart and lead to better diagnoses of often hidden cardiac problems into the future.
Almost 9,000 people have been tested since 2007, and since last year children as young as 8 are being screened, but the equipment is ten years old and needs upgrading. The clinic is also engaged in pioneering research into conditions such as SADS.
* Donations to the Mater Heart Appeal can be made online at materfoundation.ie, or by calling the office on 01 830 3482. You can also lend your support by selling heart badges in your local area to help reach the fundraising target
