Bridgewater Mom Races To Find Cure For 6-Year-Old's Rare Disease

Update: Due to rain on Sunday, the race has been moved to Saturday, Oct. 11.

BRIDGEWATER, NJ — It's a race against time, and this Bridgewater mother is not holding back.

Lauren Young is hosting Andi's Team 5K Walk & Run at Duke Island Park on Saturday to help find a cure for her beautiful, fun-loving six-year-old. Andi has been diagnosed with ataxia-telangiectasia (A-T), a terminal condition.

"When she was first born, I noticed that her tone was kind of off, and then she failed the newborn screening test," said Young to Patch.

Andi was showing that she essentially didn't have an immune system.

"We went to specialists for years and years and years trying to figure out what exactly she had going on. And we finally took her to CHOP[Children's Hospital of Philadelphia]," said Young.

And it took CHOP a year to figure out Andi's diagnosis. She was diagnosed at three years old.

"It's a super rare condition. There's only about, they think about, 200 people in the United States that have it," said Young.

A-T is a genetic disease that causes loss of muscle control and balance, cancer, lung disease and immune system problems in children and young adults.

"The road ahead for Andi will not be easy, despite being the strongest warrior. Andi's road will be filled with countless doctors and specialists of all disciplines, multiple types of therapies to maintain skills as long as possible and innumerable accommodations to meet her ever-changing needs," according to Andi's Race Page.

There is no cure for A-T and there is currently no way to slow the progression of the disease. That is why funding is desperately needed for A-T research to occur.

Young is doing her part as she is hosting the 5K to help find a cure. This is the third year she is hosting the race, with all funding going to the A-T Children's Project, a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization.

"Starting in June, Andi actually started in a clinical trial. So all of this funding and all this fundraising, and everything that we're doing, it's not just a theoretical cure," said Young. "It's directly going to these clinical trials that Andi's participating in."

Andi's Team 5K Walk & Run will be held on Saturday at Duke Island Park off Old York Road in Bridgewater. There will be vendors, fun kids’ activities, food trucks and more.

EVENT DAY SCHEDULE

• 8 a.m. – Race registration | Check-in opens
• 8:30 a.m. – Pre-race introduction
• 9 a.m. – Race starts for 5K run/walk | Kids activities begin
• 10 a.m. – 1K Kids fun run starts
• 10:30 a.m. – Post-race awards ceremony

"This event really means everything to us. We pour our heart and soul into trying to fundraise for this. Because any extra funds that we can raise can be used for any type of treatment or even things that can help alleviate symptoms," said Young. "We want to be realistic too. We don't think she's just going to be fixed tomorrow, but we want to find any treatments, whether that's therapies or drugs or other interventions that can help prolong her motor skills for as long as possible."

For more information, to register for the race, or donate, visit atcp.org/andi or facebook.com/events/s/andis-team-5k-walk-run.

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