At 13 years old, Emma Woods was diagnosed with Turner syndrome, a rare chromosomal condition. Unfortunately, Turner syndrome can cause a number of health or developmental problems, such as heart defects. For Emma, she had aortic dilation. According to the Eastern Daily Press, Emma underwent surgery in 2021 to fix some of her heart defects. Due to complications, Emma passed away at age 20. 

Her friends and family decided to take a long trek to both raise Turner Syndrome awareness and to help fundraise for the Turner Syndrome Support Society. The group, consisting of five pediatric nurses (including Emma’s mother), decided to embrace Emma’s love for life and adventure by climbing Ben Nevis. Ben Nevis is the highest mountain in Scotland, the United Kingdom, and the British Isles. 

The nurses all completed the climb! You can learn more about the climb through their Instagram and Facebook pages. Next month, on June 18th, they will also be running a charity quiz night in Cringleford; please reach out to their social media pages to learn more. 

Finally, if you’d like to donate to the cause, you may do so here. At the time of this article, the nurses have raised over £12,000. 

About Turner Syndrome

As described above, Turner syndrome is a rare chromosomal disorder in which one of the X chromosomes is either partially or fully missing. Because of this, Turner syndrome only affects females. The reason why the X chromosome is missing is unknown, though doctors sometimes hypothesize that it could be due to an error in the division of a parent’s reproductive cells. Symptoms of Turner syndrome can include:

• Abnormal kidneys (on prenatal ultrasound)
• Edema (on prenatal ultrasound)
• Heart abnormalities (on prenatal ultrasound)
• A wide neck, low-set ears, and a low hairline at the back of the head
• Slowed growth
• Cardiac defects
• Short stature with short fingers and toes
• Narrow and upward-turned fingernails and toenails
• High, narrow roof of the mouth
• Swelling of the hands and feet, especially at birth
• Failure to begin sexual changes during puberty
• Early end to menstrual cycles
• Inability to conceive a child without fertility treatment

Learn more about Turner syndrome.