Parkinson's patient 'to climb Kilimanjaro'

A woman who was diagnosed with Parkinson's disease three years ago is to climb Mount Kilimanjaro to raise money for a charity for people with the condition.

Erica Curtis, 67, has joined a fundraising trip to scale the mountain, along with others who have friends with the condition.

The senior, from Ontario in the US, is preparing for her trip by climbing up and down stairs with cans of tomatoes and beans in her backpack.

According to Simcoe.com, the adventurous Ms Curtis said in a letter to friends: "At this point, my symptoms are well controlled with medication but I understand this is a degenerative condition and I will probably not be able to take on such a vigorous adventure in the future. So it is a carpe diem situation for me." 

This comes after news that a major study into the progression of Parkinson's disease has been launched by the Michael J Fox Foundation for Parkinson's Research.

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