Partner Article

Benchmark Trek for HME Support Group

Benchmark staff are strapping on their walking boots and grabbing their poles to raise money for Membership Administrator’s Charity, the HME Support Group. I’ll leave it to Trek Leader and walking enthusiast, Amy Smith, to tell you the nitty gritty about Benchmark’s involvement, but here’s a bit about the charity we’re hoping to raise invaluable funds for…

Hereditary Multiple Exostoses (HME for short) is a very rare medical condition which affects 1:50,000 children where multiple bony spurs or lumps grow on the end of long bones causing at times severe mobility issues and pain.

A person with HME has an increased risk of developing a rare form of bone cancer as an adult althought statistics show this to be a very small percentage. HME begins to manifest itself in childhood and has no cure. HME is an autosomal dominant hereditary disorder which means that a patient with HME has a 50% chance of transmitting this condition to his or her children.

The HME Support Group is currently working alongside a leading consultant in Edinburgh and their Unversity IT Department to develop a long awaited research database (the first of its kind). This project is in its early stages of design and will cost a lot of money over the next few years. The money raised by this Trek will go towards helping us reach our goal with this research database.

Although the charity website is currently under construction, if you want to donate, visit their Just Giving page[here](http://www.justgiving.com/hmesupport“ target=). Meanwhile, we’ll keep you updated with latest Benchmark trek planning!

With care,

The Benchmarkers

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Jennifer Westmoreland .