A DAD is once again lacing up his running shoes as he gets ready to cover more than 400 miles to raise money and awareness of a fatal disease which affects his son.

Five-year-old Cormac Fegan was diagnosed with the life-limiting Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy (DMD) in February 2014.

Now, his dad, Gary, of Longniddry’s King’s Grove, is getting ready to do his bit to raise awareness of the condition, which affects thousands of other boys across the UK, and raise money for Harrison’s Fund.

This month, he will run a progressive amount each day, starting at one mile and then adding a mile each day until the last four days are a marathon or more.

The family made headlines last year when it was announced that Cormac was the first child in the UK to receive NHS funding for a breakthrough therapy to treat a muscle-wasting condition.

Forty-three-year-old Gary said: “Before Cormac’s diagnosis, I spent up to 18 hours a week training for triathlon but since February 2014 triathlon has taken a back seat and gradually the training has fizzled away to nothing, the bad eating and drinking habits took over and I now weigh two and a half stone more than I used to.

“Being no stranger to silly sporting events, I chose to do something that I’ve no idea whether or not I could complete and would be frightening enough for me to snap out of bad behaviours and get moving again, hopefully shifting a bit of weight in the process.

“I’m not taking any time off so I’ve got to fit this in with work and parenthood and my biggest worry is either injury or getting run down and catching an infection.

“Whilst I’ve a personal aim of breaking some bad habits, the big aim is to raise funds for Duchenne research and also raise awareness of the ongoing fight to access Translarna in Scotland and the rest of the UK.”

Harrison’s Fund is named after a nine-year-old from Surrey who was diagnosed with DMD, a fatal genetic condition which affects all the muscles in the body, causing them to waste away.

Harrison’s Fund’s goal is to get as much money as possible into the hands of the world’s best researchers, who are working to find a cure for Duchenne.

Alex Smith, founder of the charity Harrison’s Fund, said: “Gary has been a fervent supporter of the charity for the last few years and has undertaken many fundraising events for us in the past, including our epic Greatest Ironman Challenge last year.

“It doesn’t surprise me in the slightest that he has chosen such an extreme challenge and I know he will do the charity proud when he completes it.

“He will do anything to raise awareness of our cause.

“It is the biggest genetic killer of boys in the world and probably the most common disorder you’ve never heard of.”

To support Gary, visit justgiving.com/RUN-DMD