An Arbroath man living with a rare and fatal disease has spoken out to raise awareness of his condition.
Keith Swankie has PSP Progressive Supranuclear Palsy a rapidly progressive neurological disease caused by the death of nerve cells in the brain.
It affects eye movement, balance, mobility, speech and swallowing, and the average life expectancy is seven years from the onset of symptoms.
Mr Swankie, 42, was diagnosed a year ago but his family have no idea how long he has had the illness.
Keith, his wife Sheelagh and his two daughters, Nikki, 19, and Jordan, 15, have spoken out about the impact PSP has had on their lives and are desperate to raise the profile of the condition, which affects approximately 4,000 people in the UK.
The family agreed to be the basis of a film explaining PSP, introduced by DJ Edith Bowman whose uncle also has the condition..embed-container { position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.25%; padding-top: 30px; height: 0; overflow: hidden; max-width: 100%; height: auto; } .embed-container iframe, .embed-container object, .embed-container embed { position: absolute; top: 0; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 100%; }
Keith, who used to work for Morrisons supermarket in Arbroath said: “We all felt it was so important to get this film made about PSP not just for us but for everyone now and in the future who is affected by PSP.
“So little is known about PSP. From a personal point of view when I have been in hospital since having PSP, even the medics have never heard of it and don’t know what it is. If this video helps to raise awareness and generate more funding for PSP, that was motivation enough for us to do it.”
Keith first began experiencing symptoms of PSP in 2009. A chance meeting between Keith’s GP and a geriatrician eventually led to the PSP diagnosis.
He described the day he had to tell his wife he was going to die as “horrible”.