The Heart Foundation’s biggest fundraiser of the year is back this month with some well-known New Zealanders sharing their heart stories to highlight the Big Heart Appeal and the importance of investment in heart research to save lives.
International dancer, choreographer and DJ, Lance Savali, lives with a heart condition called supraventricular tachycardia or SVT, which he says has given him his fair share of scary moments on stage.
“My heartbeat DJis way faster than a normal heart,” says Lance. “This is not easy to manage when you’re dancing up a storm on stage.”
Keyhole surgery has helped Lance maintain his active lifestyle and a good understanding of his condition helps him to manage it.
Now he wants to give back and support the Heart Foundation, his charity of choice for the new season of Treasure Island: Fans vs Faves, and encourage New Zealanders to support the Big Heart Appeal.
Medical Director at the Heart Foundation Dr. Gerry Devlin says, “with heart disease claiming the life of one New Zealander every 90 minutes, it’s vital that we invest in life-saving research to help keep families together for longer.”
Heart disease is New Zealand’s single biggest killer, claiming the lives of more than 6,500 New Zealanders every year – that’s one person every 90 minutes.
More than 175,000 New Zealanders are currently living with heart disease.
Heart disease can affect anyone, anywhere, at any time. The Heart Foundation is calling for New Zealanders to donate whatever they can towards funding heart research during the month of February either online (heartfoundation.org.nz/big-heart-appeal) or through the Big Heart Appeal that will take place across the country on Friday 24 and Saturday 25 February.
