After a whirlwind year of marathons and fund-raising events, Josette Falzon remains an untiring champion for the cystic fibrosis cause, spurred on by the overwhelming support extended by the public.

A year since her resolve to raise £10,000 for the British charity the Cystic Fibrosis Trust, to support its research for a cure to this life-threatening disease, the 34-year-old has managed to raise £58,000 (nearly Lm37,000).

"Fund raising is not easy and it takes a lot of time, but as long as my family, friends and the public continue supporting the cause, I'll keep going," she said.

Ms Falzon, whose six-year-old daughter Francesca was born with cystic fibrosis, had initially just set her sights on running the half marathon last March. However, the feedback and generosity was so encouraging she has since kept it up.

Apart from raising funds, her campaign was instrumental in raising awareness on a genetic condition that few people knew about.

About one child in every 4,000 to 6,000 is born with this condition in Malta. It is very hard to gauge the actual incidence of CF in Malta since St Luke's Hospital registers congenital anomalies of babies at birth and, more often than not, children are diagnosed with CF later on in life.

Presently, there is one child diagnosed with CF every year, or every other year. However, there could be more because it is a hard disease to diagnose.

CF causes the body to produce thick, sticky mucus that clogs the lungs and obstructs the pancreas, preventing digestive enzymes from reaching the intestines to help break down and absorb the food.

In 1964 the life expectancy of children born with CF was under 10, but because of the advances in medical research the lifespan has now shot up to about 30.

A cure is now within sight and the Trust says: "We are now talking about when, rather than if".

According to the CF Trust a lot of progress has been made on gene therapy research and it is hoping to start a trial on a small number of patients.

Around a quarter of the Trust's research funds are directed at improving current clinical care by controlling symptoms. Preventing and controlling lung infections, reducing inflammation and improving nutrition will all help keep people fit and healthy for longer.

Having dedicated a lot of time and energy to getting in shape for the last Malta Half Marathon, Ms Falzon's training regime slackened a bit during the hot summer months. However, driven by people's commitment to her cause she plans to start a disciplined routine next month, under the guidance of her friend and trainer Claire Felice Pace, to run in the half marathon again in February.

Spurred on by her friend's cause, Ms Felice Pace, who forms part of the Ladies' Running Club, will also be running the London Marathon in April in aid of the CF Trust.

In the meantime, a fund-raising dinner will be held for the same cause on November 4 at the Radisson SAS Golden Sands Resort & Spa, Golden Bay.

Those interested in attending can call Ms Falzon on 9944 8478 or Mark Pace on 7944 6196.

Otherwise, donations in sterling can be made directly to the Cystic Fibrosis Trust with a credit card by accessing this website www.justgiving.com/runningforfranny

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