TWO sisters are set to run for a mile in support of their mother, who had open heart surgery shortly after they were both born.

Sarah May Austin, 29, from Burnley, was told while she was pregnant with her oldest child, Lilly-May, she suffered from a condition known as partial anomalous pulmonary venous drainage (PAPVD).

The condition means there is an unbalanced division of the arteries on both sides of the heart, causing an uneven distribution of blood, resulting in her lungs not receiving an adequate supply.

She said: “My only symptom was breathlessness, I felt out of breath all the time. Doctors thought I had asthma, but inhalers never helped.

“There is some history of heart attacks in my family, but it was still a shock when I was told what was wrong.”

Her surgery took place just three months after the birth of Lilly-May’s sister Evie-Leigh, now seven, who like her elder sibling came into the world at Manchester Heart Centre.

Post-operation, the strain on Sarah, who was born with a hole in the heart, in dealing with a newborn was initially tough to cope with.

She said: “I couldn’t lift any weight after the operation in order to let my ribs heal.

“I wanted to bond with my baby and look after her, but I couldn’t even lift her. I didn’t like not being able to cuddle her.”

Meanwhile the rest of the family, including big brother Brendan, then five, rallied around to look after their mother.

Several years on Lilly-May, now nine, and Evie-Leigh, aged seven, want to support the British Heart Foundation, as the charity campaigns for patients like Sarah.

Their aim is to run a mile for the BHF on June 18 at Barden running track in Burnley and they are seeking sponsors, after also being inspired by a ‘Run, Jog, Walk’ promotion at Casterton Primary School. Burnley Athletics Club has donated the use of the track for the sisters’ challenge.

Sarah has been given the all-clear, with her cardiac complaint, after extensive testing but the girls are keen to support other families hit by heart disease, through the charity’s medical research programme.

Readers can support the girls in their challenge by going online to their Just Giving website fundraising page at www.justgiving.com/Evie-LeighLilly-May

If anyone in East Lancashire wants to volunteer for their own BHF fundraiser, the charity can also be contacted online at www.bhf.org.uk/fundraisingpack for more information.