Two brothers undertaking a marathon challenge for dementia research are set to exceed a £1 million fundraising target as they travel across Ireland. Jordan and Cian Adams have been diagnosed with a rare gene causing frontotemporal dementia (FTD), giving them a high chance of developing dementia in their 40s. Their mother Geraldine died at age 52 after developing FTD.
Jordan, 30, is running 33 marathons in 33 days to raise funds and awareness of dementia, supported by his physio brother Cian, 25. The FTD Brothers, from Redditch, Worcestershire, initially aimed to raise £1 million before symptoms appear.
Jordan began by running the London Marathon on April 26 while carrying a 25kg fridge on his back, then traveled to Ireland to run a marathon daily in each of the 32 counties. The odyssey included the Belfast Marathon on Sunday and will conclude in Dublin on May 28. On Monday, hundreds supported the brothers as they set off in Dundalk, Co Louth.
Cian told the Press Association: "It is really rare but familial frontotemporal dementia runs in our family. That accounts for less than 1% of dementias. Mum was one of 13 cousins, and eight out of the 13 had dementia in their 40s. Myself and my brother Jordan have been tested and we know that we carry the mutation that causes that FTD."
Jordan said: "I was 15 when mum was diagnosed. Mum went from being this vivacious, bubbly, life and soul character... We noticed small but significant changes around 2008/09 when mum became more socially withdrawn... My dad went on a journey to get answers and it took him two years to eventually get the diagnosis. She died at the age of 52. She was a shell of the human being she had been, and it was incredibly cruel to watch."
Jordan added: "Just two years later, in 2018, my genetic consultant told me I am a carrier of the mutation. That gives me a 99.9% chance of getting FTD. Since then I have tried to use my diagnosis as a licence to live. We don't have a choice with the cards you get dealt in life, but you have a choice at how you play your hand. Five years later Cian was given the diagnosis at the age of 23. Overnight the FTD Brothers were born."
The brothers have raised hundreds of thousands of pounds for charity over the past eight years, but their fundraising and recognition have soared since the latest challenge began. Jordan said: "We have come back to the place my mum called home here in Ireland and we have been received like we could never have expected. The Irish people have got behind us so incredibly. I think we are going to need some crowd control by the time we get to Dublin because it is getting a bit crazy."
Cian said: "The public reaction has been absolutely mind-blowing, unbelievable. We didn't expect the level of support we would get. It takes Jordan about 10 minutes to get anywhere because he is like the selfie king now. We are grateful to the Irish people for getting behind two English lads."
Jordan has battled aches, pains, and blisters but said the support made it hard to feel tired. He said: "It is motivation to get through each day. I have got another 25 marathons to run, we've got a long way to go. We're just taking it one day at a time. We'll just continue building momentum and hopefully the body can make it in one piece."
The brothers' "lifetime goal" of raising £1 million was surpassed last week, and they are on track to exceed it during the London Marathon and Irish challenge. Cian said: "It feels like the whole of Ireland is behind us now and people all over the globe." Jordan added: "It has gone beyond the fundraising goal, it is the millions of people we have inspired around the world. To have that sort of impact all over the world is even more important than raising a million pounds. There are so many families all over the world who suffer in silence, who have lived through dementia and felt that heartbreak and devastation. We finally feel like we are giving a voice to those families, they are being heard and now we have to use this to create real change."
Cian joked that his brother cannot have a Guinness to celebrate the fundraising landmark as he has another 25 marathons to run.
