A STEWARTON man has raised almost £5,000 to help a four-year-old girl suffering from a rare form of epilepsy.

George Wilkie ran a one hundred mile loop around Ayrshire, starting and finishing in his hometown, to help pay for a vital scan for his relative Holly Hindmarsh.

Holly has been suffering from seizures since the age of two and, despite doctors trying several courses of treatment, she is yet to find something to alleviate them.

George said: “None of the treatments are working anymore. Some things were working for a wee while and then she was just falling back into a pattern of seizures.

“She can have over one hundred seizures a day. She could fall to the ground at any minute.”

The 51-year-old had been planning to undertake the challenge for a while and, after hearing about Holly from his mum, decided he wanted to use it as an opportunity to help her.

The distance was split into two parts, with George covering 65 miles in one day before completing the remaining 35 the following week.

He said: “She is my cousin’s granddaughter. I heard her story and it struck a chord with me. I thought I should do it for a good cause and to raise the profile of what Holly is going through.”

“I had originally planned to do it all in one day, but when I got to the 65 mile mark I was struggling.

“I could’ve walked the rest of the way, but I really wanted to run the full distance.”

The money raised will go towards getting Holly to London for a brain scan under general anaesthetic at a private hospital. Her family hope the scan will allow doctors to figure out what form of epilepsy she has and identify some surgical options.

George said Holly’s parents have been overwhelmed by the response.

He added: “They couldn’t believe all the lovely comments and support from people.

“I was initially aiming to raise £2,000, but it just shot up

“I had no idea it would get such a big response.

“This should cover the costs for this part of her care. We’ll know after this what she needs done and should have a better idea of how much it will cost.”

Holly’s parents are now exploring their options in London in terms of where and when the scan can be done.