Hundreds get heart checks in memory of Toby, 23

Hundreds of young people have been given free heart screenings in memory of a 23-year-old man who died of an undiagnosed congenital heart condition.

Toby Chenery, who was seemingly fit and healthy and loved playing football, died unexpectedly in his sleep on 25 February last year.

Since then, his parents, Trevor Chenery and Jane Wilson, from Halesworth, Suffolk, have made it their mission to help others detect potential heart problems sooner.

This weekend, in partnership with charity Cardiac Risk in the Young (CRY), they hosted 200 free heart screenings at the town's Pear Tree Centre, which were booked up in just 15 minutes.

Each participant had a 10-minute electrocardiogram (ECG) test, which can detect heart muscle disorders and electrical faults.

If something abnormal was found, they were told they would be sent for an echocardiogram, which is like an ultrasound for the heart.

If required, they would then be referred to either their GP or a hospital cardiology department.

Toby, who played for Halesworth Town, was one of at least 12 apparently fit and healthy young people aged 35 and under who died every week from undiagnosed heart conditions in the UK, according to CRY.

"It's a really tragic and traumatic situation and I think it's definitely made a lot of people more aware that this does happen – Toby wasn't a one-off," said Wilson.

"We had no chance of saving him, but these young people shouldn't be passing away, and as parents and grandparents, we shouldn't be outliving them.

"Ultimately, we'd like to see this as part of a national screening programme so that all young people are screened at the age of 14 or during their life."

The local community helped raise thousands of pounds to fund the screening sessions.

Each test costs about £70, so the cost of screening 200 people across the weekend was about £14,000.

"People have just been incredibly kind and generous: individuals, businesses, organisations, football clubs," said Wilson.

"We have enough money in the fund to hold two more weekends currently but we are going to see if we can make this an annual thing in Toby's memory."

One of Toby's best friends, 25-year-old history teacher Callum Reid, was among those tested.

The pair played football together, and shortly before Toby's death had been to Wales to climb Yr Wyddfa (Snowdon).

"It really rocked our world when Toby passed away because there were no signs that he was ill," he said.

"So, I think it's really important young people get screened because the way that it can affect families and communities out of the blue is terrible.

"I'm seeing first-hand the impact that can have, and I don't want other people to have to go through that as well."

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