Bury St Edmunds 21-year-old bounces back from serious heart issues to run marathon in Finland for North West Hearts charity

A 21-year-old man from a Suffolk town has recovered from thinking he was about to die to running a marathon in Finland for a specialist heart charity.

Keanan Reeve, who lives in Bury St Edmunds, was attending Manchester Metropolitan University in October 2023 and was four weeks into a marathon training programme before he began experiencing severe chest pains.

Within a week, the physiotherapy student had undergone numerous scans and tests which diagnosed him with myocarditis (inflammation of the heart muscle) and pericarditis (inflammation of the outer lining of the heart).

An MRI scan had also found an atrial septal defect – a type of congenital heart disease that had caused a large hole to form in the septum between both atria in Keanan’s heart.

After a surgery and six months of life restrictions where he was not allowed to exercise, he was on the way to recovery until he began to experience severe palpitations with an irregular heart beat.

Tests showed that his heart was in atrial fibrillation (AF) – a potentially dangerous heart rhythm where there was less than one in 100 chance that would be caused by surgery – Keanan was the unlucky one.

“I remember I was laying down staring at the ceiling genuinely thinking I was about to die,” he said.

“As the sedation medication was going in I was just praying that this cardioversion would work and I would wake up to see my friends and family again.

“I'm forever so grateful that it did work and I am so thankful to say that I am now in one of the best moments of my life.

“I’m incredibly thankful to everyone around me, especially my amazing family and friends who have gone above and beyond to support me throughout this journey.

Keanan added: “I cannot thank my mum, Caroline, enough for all she has done for me this last year. She travelled eight-hour round trips up north to be with me in hospital and was always there for me throughout the toughest months of my life.”

Keanan has completed seven weeks of training so far and is slowly gearing up to run the Helsinki Marathon in Finland on August 24 before he goes travelling in September.

He is running for North West Hearts charity, which looked after him while he was in hospital, and has so far raised more £3,450 on his GoFundMe fund-raiser, smashing his £2,500 target already.

“I’m excited to do the marathon and it will be tough of course, but I’m just grateful to be able to exercise again to be honest,” Keanan said.

“I would like to raise money for North West Hearts who are amazing but also raise awareness that no matter how young you are or how healthy your lifestyle is, cardiac symptoms should never be ignored.

“I exercise regularly with a rare day off, I eat clean foods with a balanced diet, I don't smoke, I don't do drugs and I only drink alcohol once every one or two weeks. I would never have thought this would have happened to me, but it did.

“So please don't ignore the symptoms, one trip to A&E could save your life.”