a 25-year-old woman has become the fifth person in her family to be diagnosed with a devastating brain disease . kirsty skinsley has huntington 's disease -- an inherited condition that damages the brain cells causing problems with movement , behaviour and cognition . she is thought to be one of the youngest people in the uk diagnosed with the disease which usually develops in adulthood , after first suffering symptoms when she was 15 . ms . skinsley , from southport , merseyside , said : ` the doctors told me that it . would be surprising if i had huntington 's at such a young age . kirsty skinsley , 25 , has become the fifth person in her family to be diagnosed with a devastating brain illness . ms skinsley has huntington 's disease as does her brother , liam , -lrb- also pictured as a child -rrb- and father , brian . her grandmother , sarah skinsley , and aunt , paula edwards , have already died from the disease . huntington 's is an incurable disease caused by an inherited faulty gene , which produces a protein called huntingtin . it 's not known how , but the gene causes widespread damage to the nerve cells in the brain , causing a range of symptoms . sufferers can exhibit emotional and mental changes such as mood swings , clumsiness , lack of motivation , aggression and depression which , in the early stages , can often be written off as simple personality traits . later , they develop physical problems such as the shakes or nervous tics , then weight loss and muscle weakness which leave the patient unable to swallow , speak or move . every sufferer has a different rate of deterioration , but it is a fatal condition . on average , patients live for between 10 and 20 years after their diagnosis . huntington 's disease is estimated to affect around 8,000 people in the uk . in adults the symptoms usually appear between the ages of 35 and 50 , although until a blood test was introduced around 20 years ago , it was very difficult to diagnose it at an early stage . in rare cases , symptoms can start to develop in childhood . to inherit the condition a child has to have just one parent who has it - if a person has the faulty gene , there is a 50 per cent chance each of their children will inherit it . sufferers are typically aged between 30 and 50 years old and each child whose parent has huntington 's has a 50:50 chance of inheriting the faulty gene . there . is no way of slowing down or stopping the progression of the disease . and sufferers usually get progressively worse for 10 to 20 years before . eventually dying . ` becoming . 21 is a milestone and i did n't want to go into the next stage of my . life not knowing what lay in store for my future , ' ms skinsley said . ` although i knew that huntington 's was on the horizon , doctors had said it was so unlikely i had it so young so i was surprised when they told me . ` i was in denial for a long time as is expected with any terminal diagnosis and i did n't want to open up to anyone about it . ` doctors told me they had n't dealt with someone with huntington 's as young as me before . ' the former optician suffers from involuntary movements which are managed with medication and says she has good and bad days . her father , brian , and brother , liam have also been diagnosed with the condition , and the 25-year-old has already watched as the disease claimed the lives of her grandmother and aunt . her grandmother , sarah skinsley , died of the disease at 38 , and her aunt , paula edwards , died at 42 . the future is uncertain for ms skinsley and she fears she will not be able to do everything her friends may experience in their lifetimes . she said : ` i see my mates getting mortgages and having babies and i do feel like i 'm missing something . ` i 'd love to think i would get the family and marriage situation but i do n't know what the futures holds for me . ms skinsley -lrb- pictured with her mother , donna -rrb- experiences involuntary muscle movements and behavioural changes and knows the illness is progressive so wants to experience as much as possible now . ms skinsley -lrb- pictured before her illness -rrb- is trying to raise money for the huntington 's disease association . ` i would like to think it will happen . there . is treatment sort of like an ivf process now which ensures genetically . that the embryos they insert do n't have the condition , so i would do . that . ` i . do get sad that i do n't have that normality that others have but i have . amazing family and friends and i try my best to stay grounded and . positive . ' she is determined not to succumb to her . illness and has written a bucket list of things she wants to do before . the disease worsens . so far she wants to meet her idol pink , do a parachute jump and have a dream holiday in mexico to swim with dolphins . she will also be cycling from cornwall to sheffield on june 9 to raise money for the huntington 's disease association . to sponsor ms skinsley visit : www.justgiving.com/teamawesome-hd .
kirsty skinsley was diagnosed with the brain disease just before her 21st . father and brother have also been diagnosed with the inherited condition . her grandmother and her aunt lost their lives to huntington 's disease . ms skinsley currently experiences involuntary muscle movements . the progressive illness causes personality changes and muscle problems . she does not know what the future hold as most patients die within 10 to 20 years of their diagnosis . 25-year-old has a bucket list of things to do before her illness progresses .
a 25-year-old woman has become the fifth person in her family to be diagnosed with a devastating brain disease . kirsty skinsley has huntington 's disease -- an inherited condition that damages the brain cells causing problems with movement , behaviour and cognition . she is thought to be one of the youngest people in the uk diagnosed with the disease which usually develops in adulthood , after first suffering symptoms when she was 15 . ms . skinsley , from southport , merseyside , said : ` the doctors told me that it . would be surprising if i had huntington 's at such a young age . kirsty skinsley , 25 , has become the fifth person in her family to be diagnosed with a devastating brain illness . ms skinsley has huntington 's disease as does her brother , liam , -lrb- also pictured as a child -rrb- and father , brian . her grandmother , sarah skinsley , and aunt , paula edwards , have already died from the disease . huntington 's is an incurable disease caused by an inherited faulty gene , which produces a protein called huntingtin . it 's not known how , but the gene causes widespread damage to the nerve cells in the brain , causing a range of symptoms . sufferers can exhibit emotional and mental changes such as mood swings , clumsiness , lack of motivation , aggression and depression which , in the early stages , can often be written off as simple personality traits . later , they develop physical problems such as the shakes or nervous tics , then weight loss and muscle weakness which leave the patient unable to swallow , speak or move . every sufferer has a different rate of deterioration , but it is a fatal condition . on average , patients live for between 10 and 20 years after their diagnosis . huntington 's disease is estimated to affect around 8,000 people in the uk . in adults the symptoms usually appear between the ages of 35 and 50 , although until a blood test was introduced around 20 years ago , it was very difficult to diagnose it at an early stage . in rare cases , symptoms can start to develop in childhood . to inherit the condition a child has to have just one parent who has it - if a person has the faulty gene , there is a 50 per cent chance each of their children will inherit it . sufferers are typically aged between 30 and 50 years old and each child whose parent has huntington 's has a 50:50 chance of inheriting the faulty gene . there . is no way of slowing down or stopping the progression of the disease . and sufferers usually get progressively worse for 10 to 20 years before . eventually dying . ` becoming . 21 is a milestone and i did n't want to go into the next stage of my . life not knowing what lay in store for my future , ' ms skinsley said . ` although i knew that huntington 's was on the horizon , doctors had said it was so unlikely i had it so young so i was surprised when they told me . ` i was in denial for a long time as is expected with any terminal diagnosis and i did n't want to open up to anyone about it . ` doctors told me they had n't dealt with someone with huntington 's as young as me before . ' the former optician suffers from involuntary movements which are managed with medication and says she has good and bad days . her father , brian , and brother , liam have also been diagnosed with the condition , and the 25-year-old has already watched as the disease claimed the lives of her grandmother and aunt . her grandmother , sarah skinsley , died of the disease at 38 , and her aunt , paula edwards , died at 42 . the future is uncertain for ms skinsley and she fears she will not be able to do everything her friends may experience in their lifetimes . she said : ` i see my mates getting mortgages and having babies and i do feel like i 'm missing something . ` i 'd love to think i would get the family and marriage situation but i do n't know what the futures holds for me . ms skinsley -lrb- pictured with her mother , donna -rrb- experiences involuntary muscle movements and behavioural changes and knows the illness is progressive so wants to experience as much as possible now . ms skinsley -lrb- pictured before her illness -rrb- is trying to raise money for the huntington 's disease association . ` i would like to think it will happen . there . is treatment sort of like an ivf process now which ensures genetically . that the embryos they insert do n't have the condition , so i would do . that . ` i . do get sad that i do n't have that normality that others have but i have . amazing family and friends and i try my best to stay grounded and . positive . ' she is determined not to succumb to her . illness and has written a bucket list of things she wants to do before . the disease worsens . so far she wants to meet her idol pink , do a parachute jump and have a dream holiday in mexico to swim with dolphins . she will also be cycling from cornwall to sheffield on june 9 to raise money for the huntington 's disease association . to sponsor ms skinsley visit : www.justgiving.com/teamawesome-hd .
a 25-year-old woman has become the fifth person in her family to be diagnosed with a devastating brain disease . kirsty skinsley has huntington 's disease -- an inherited condition that damages the brain cells causing problems with movement , behaviour and cognition . she is thought to be one of the youngest people in the uk diagnosed with the disease which usually develops in adulthood , after first suffering symptoms when she was 15 . ms . skinsley , from southport , merseyside , said : ` the doctors told me that it . would be surprising if i had huntington 's at such a young age . kirsty skinsley , 25 , has become the fifth person in her family to be diagnosed with a devastating brain illness . ms skinsley has huntington 's disease as does her brother , liam , -lrb- also pictured as a child -rrb- and father , brian . her grandmother , sarah skinsley , and aunt , paula edwards , have already died from the disease . huntington 's is an incurable disease caused by an inherited faulty gene , which produces a protein called huntingtin . it 's not known how , but the gene causes widespread damage to the nerve cells in the brain , causing a range of symptoms . sufferers can exhibit emotional and mental changes such as mood swings , clumsiness , lack of motivation , aggression and depression which , in the early stages , can often be written off as simple personality traits . later , they develop physical problems such as the shakes or nervous tics , then weight loss and muscle weakness which leave the patient unable to swallow , speak or move . every sufferer has a different rate of deterioration , but it is a fatal condition . on average , patients live for between 10 and 20 years after their diagnosis . huntington 's disease is estimated to affect around 8,000 people in the uk . in adults the symptoms usually appear between the ages of 35 and 50 , although until a blood test was introduced around 20 years ago , it was very difficult to diagnose it at an early stage . in rare cases , symptoms can start to develop in childhood . to inherit the condition a child has to have just one parent who has it - if a person has the faulty gene , there is a 50 per cent chance each of their children will inherit it . sufferers are typically aged between 30 and 50 years old and each child whose parent has huntington 's has a 50:50 chance of inheriting the faulty gene . there . is no way of slowing down or stopping the progression of the disease . and sufferers usually get progressively worse for 10 to 20 years before . eventually dying . ` becoming . 21 is a milestone and i did n't want to go into the next stage of my . life not knowing what lay in store for my future , ' ms skinsley said . ` although i knew that huntington 's was on the horizon , doctors had said it was so unlikely i had it so young so i was surprised when they told me . ` i was in denial for a long time as is expected with any terminal diagnosis and i did n't want to open up to anyone about it . ` doctors told me they had n't dealt with someone with huntington 's as young as me before . ' the former optician suffers from involuntary movements which are managed with medication and says she has good and bad days . her father , brian , and brother , liam have also been diagnosed with the condition , and the 25-year-old has already watched as the disease claimed the lives of her grandmother and aunt . her grandmother , sarah skinsley , died of the disease at 38 , and her aunt , paula edwards , died at 42 . the future is uncertain for ms skinsley and she fears she will not be able to do everything her friends may experience in their lifetimes . she said : ` i see my mates getting mortgages and having babies and i do feel like i 'm missing something . ` i 'd love to think i would get the family and marriage situation but i do n't know what the futures holds for me . ms skinsley -lrb- pictured with her mother , donna -rrb- experiences involuntary muscle movements and behavioural changes and knows the illness is progressive so wants to experience as much as possible now . ms skinsley -lrb- pictured before her illness -rrb- is trying to raise money for the huntington 's disease association . ` i would like to think it will happen . there . is treatment sort of like an ivf process now which ensures genetically . that the embryos they insert do n't have the condition , so i would do . that . ` i . do get sad that i do n't have that normality that others have but i have . amazing family and friends and i try my best to stay grounded and . positive . ' she is determined not to succumb to her . illness and has written a bucket list of things she wants to do before . the disease worsens . so far she wants to meet her idol pink , do a parachute jump and have a dream holiday in mexico to swim with dolphins . she will also be cycling from cornwall to sheffield on june 9 to raise money for the huntington 's disease association . to sponsor ms skinsley visit : www.justgiving.com/teamawesome-hd .
 has become her family diagnosed a devastating brain disease. kirsty skinsley has huntington 's disease -- an inherited condition damages causing problems movement, behaviour she is thought one the uk diagnosed which usually develops adulthood, after first suffering symptoms when 15. ms. skinsley, from southport merseyside said ` the doctors told. would surprising i huntington 's at. kirsty skinsley, 25, has become the fifth person her family a devastating brain illness. ms skinsley has huntington 's disease as does her brother, liam -lrb- also pictured as father brian her grandmother, sarah skinsley and aunt paula edwards have already died the disease huntington 's is an incurable disease caused an inherited faulty gene, produces huntingtin it 's known, the gene causes widespread damage causing a range. sufferers can exhibit emotional and mental changes such mood swings, clumsiness lack aggression which, the early stages often written simple personality traits later, they develop physical problems such the shakes or nervous tics, then weight loss muscle weakness which leave swallow, speak every sufferer a different rate deterioration, a fatal condition. on average, patients live for between. huntington 's disease estimated the uk. in adults the symptoms usually between 35, although until a blood test was introduced around 20, very it at in rare cases, symptoms can start childhood to inherit the condition a child to just one parent who it - if a person the faulty gene, there each. sufferers are typically aged each child whose parent huntington 's has a 50:50 chance the faulty gene. there. is no way of slowing or the progression. and sufferers usually get progressively for 10 before. eventually dying. ` becoming. 21 is a milestone and i did n't want go the next stage. life not knowing lay my future, ' ms skinsley said. ` although i knew huntington 's was on doctors said so unlikely i it so young so surprised. ` i was in denial as is expected with any terminal diagnosis i did n't want open about. ` doctors told n't dealt someone huntington 's as young me before. ' the former optician suffers involuntary movements which managed medication says good and bad days. her father, brian brother liam have also diagnosed the condition the 25 already watched as claimed her grandmother aunt her grandmother, sarah skinsley died the disease 38 and paula edwards the future is uncertain ms skinsley and she fears do everything her friends may experience. she : ` i see my mates getting mortgages having babies i do feel ' missing. ` i 'd love think i would get the family and marriage situation but do n't the futures holds. ms skinsley -lrb- pictured with her mother, donna -rrb- experiences involuntary muscle movements behavioural changes and knows the illness progressive so wants experience as now. ms skinsley -lrb- pictured before her illness is trying raise the huntington 's disease association. ` i would think it happen. there. is treatment sort an ivf process now which ensures genetically. that the embryos they insert do n't the condition, so i would do. that. ` i. do get sad that i do n't that normality that others but have. amazing family and i try stay grounded. positive. ' she is determined not succumb. illness and has written a bucket list things before. the disease worsens. so far she wants meet her idol pink, do a parachute jump have a dream holiday mexico to swim dolphins. she will also cycling from cornwall sheffield on june 9 to raise the huntington 's disease association. to sponsor ms skinsley visit : www.justgiving.com/teamawesome-hd.
personality traits . later , they develop physical problems such as the shakes or nervous tics , then weight loss and muscle weakness which leave the patient unable to swallow , speak or move . every sufferer has a different rate of deterioration , but it is a fatal condition . on average , patients live for between 10 and 20 years after their diagnosis . huntington 's disease is estimated to affect around 8,000 people in the uk . in adults the symptoms usually appear between the ages of 35 and 50 , although until a blood test was introduced around 20 years ago , it was very difficult to diagnose it at an early stage . in rare cases , symptoms can start to develop in childhood . to inherit the condition a child has to have just one parent who has it - if a person has the faulty gene , there is a 50 per cent chance each of their children will inherit it . sufferers are typically aged between 30 and 50 years old and each child whose parent has huntington 's has a 50:50 chance of inheriting the faulty gene . there . is no way of slowing down or stopping the progression of the disease . and sufferers usually get progressively worse for 10 to 20 years before . eventually dying . ` becoming . 21 is a milestone and i did n't want to go into the next stage of my . life not knowing what lay in store for my future , ' ms skinsley said . ` although i knew that huntington 's was on the horizon , doctors had said it was so unlikely i had it so young so i was surprised when they told me . ` i was in denial for a long time as is expected with any terminal diagnosis and i did n't want to open up to anyone about it . ` doctors told me they had n't dealt with someone with huntington 's as young as me before . ' the former optician suffers from involuntary movements which are managed with medication and says she has good and bad days . her father , brian , and brother , liam have also been diagnosed with the condition , and the 25-year-old has already watched as the disease claimed the lives of her grandmother and aunt . her grandmother , sarah skinsley , died of the disease at 38 , and her aunt , paula edwards , died at 42 . the future is uncertain for ms skinsley and she fears she will not be able to do everything her friends may experience in their lifetimes . she said : ` i see my mates getting mortgages and having babies and i do feel like i 'm missing something . ` i 'd love to think i would get the family and marriage situation but i do n't know what the futures holds for me . ms skinsley -lrb- pictured with her mother , donna -rrb- experiences involuntary muscle movements and behavioural changes and knows the illness is progressive so wants to experience as much as possible now . ms skinsley -lrb- pictured before her illness -rrb- is trying to raise money for the huntington 's disease association . ` i would like to think it will happen . there . is treatment sort of like an ivf process now which ensures genetically . that the embryos they insert do n't have the condition , so i would do . that . ` i . do get sad that i do n't have that normality that others have but i have . amazing family and friends and i try my best to stay grounded and . positive . ' she is determined not to succumb to her . illness and has written a bucket list of things she wants to do before . the disease worsens . so far she wants to meet her idol pink , do a parachute jump and have a dream holiday in mexico to swim with dolphins . she will also be cycling from cornwall to sheffield on june 9 to raise money for the huntington 's disease association . to sponsor ms skinsley visit : www.justgiving.com/teamawesome-hd .
 The text discusses the genetic disorder Huntington's disease, which affects approximately 8,000 people in the UK. It is an inherited condition that causes progressive damage to the brain, leading to physical, emotional, and cognitive decline. Symptoms typically appear between ages 35-50, but can start earlier or later in life. There is currently no cure, but medication and therapy can help manage symptoms. Genetic testing is available for those with a family history of the disease. A person has a 50% chance of inheriting the faulty gene if one parent has it. The disease progresses slowly over 10-20 years, eventually leading to death. In rare cases, symptoms can start in childhood. Doctors had difficulty diagnosing the condition until a blood test was introduced around 20 years ago. Now, diagnosis is possible at an early stage, allowing for better management of symptoms. However, there is still no way to slow down or stop the progression of the disease.