Brother's Kilimanjaro trek in memory of Lee Armstrong

Chris, who will be climbing Mount Kilimanjaro come January 16th over seven days, has already raised £1,522 for Jordan's Addison's Disease Awareness charity in memory of Lee Armstrong, a 24-year-old father-of-one who passed away in February.

Addison’s Disease is a rare disorder of the adrenal glands, in which they do not produce enough essential steroid hormones. It can be life-threatening if untreated and affects approximately 1 in 10,000 people.

All the money raised through the challenge, under the initiative Lee's Light, will go directly towards raising awareness about the disease, supporting individuals diagnosed with Addison's, and assisting their families.

"Lee was unwaveringly kind in the midst of a challenging life and career; juggling full-time work as a carer for people with learning difficulties and traumatic brain injuries whilst caring at home for his baby boy, Louis, and his fiancée," Chris said. 

"Lee and I were blessed with parents who put us in the scouts and brought us up hiking in the Lake District, which Lee in particular adored.

"Climbing 5,895 Tanzanian metres feels like a fitting but also an ambitious way to honour his memory," he said. 

Lee was also a proud organ donor, whose generosity went on to help save the lives of four recipients, including a six-year-old girl.

Lee, 24, pictured with his son Louis (Image: Family of Lee Armstrong)

At Lee's inquest in November, assistant Coroner for Cumbria, Robert Cohen, sent an official report to the government and NHS officials warning of possible future deaths should lessons not be learned from Lee's death. 

The coroner raised concerns about the emergency call-handling procedure used by the North West Ambulance Service, after about six hours passed between the first 999 calls made by Lee's partner and an ambulance arriving after a second call.

He said: "The evidence indicates that knowledge that Mr Armstrong suffered from Addison’s Disease would have dramatically altered the response to the call.

Lee with his mum, Debbie (Image: Family of Lee Armstrong)

"However, the NHS Pathways system does not ask callers to indicate whether they have any existing conditions."

He also expressed concern that information supplied to 111 online is not shared with the ambulance service, and that call handlers do not have access to patients' medical records.

“We really do believe that there are lessons that could be learned from Lee’s story," Chris said. 

"The coroner in the inquest said he believed other people could meet the same fate unless changes are made within NHS England and Pathways system on emergency service phone lines.

“We’re working with Addison's self-help group to try and put pressure on the NHS to make those changes," Chris said. 

You can follow Chris' expedition via @Lees_light on Instagram. 

To donate to Chris' fundraiser, you can visit www.justgiving.com/page/lees-light-kilimanjaro