A heart tragedy rocks Britain: Two young men die from undiagnosed heart conditions.

 

Two young widows, Laura Burr and Gabi Evans, have shared their heartbreaking stories of losing their partners to undiagnosed heart conditions, warning that thousands of young people could be at risk of sudden death due to undetected heart conditions.

According to the Mail Online website, these stories come at a time when statistics show that around 400,000 people in the UK suffer from undiagnosed heart failure, 10% of whom are under the age of 50.

Edward Burr, 32, died in October 2024 after developing heart failure that he hadn't known he had.

The symptoms began one day after his wedding, when he felt unwell and thought he had contracted the virus after attending the wedding with 60 people. His condition deteriorated, and he was diagnosed with pneumonia. It was later discovered that his heart was failing.

Edward was taken to the John Radcliffe Hospital in Oxford, where he was diagnosed with acute heart failure during the ambulance ride.

In July 2024, he underwent open-heart surgery at Harefield Hospital in London, where a machine was fitted to support blood flow.

Despite doctors planning a heart transplant, the wait was long, and Edward died of multiple organ failure.

"I was a bride and a wife at 30, and now I'm a widow at 31," Laura Burr, 31, told Mail Online. "Those are not words a woman of my age should be saying."

In a similar incident, Gabi Evans, a nurse from Burnley, lost her partner, Tom Breakwell, 34, in January 2025, after he suffered a heart attack caused by high blood pressure and undiagnosed coronary artery disease.

The symptoms began two weeks before his death, when he experienced sudden chest pains. He was taken to the hospital, where doctors believed he had suffered a heart attack.

After his condition stabilized and he was discharged from the hospital, Gabi woke up on the morning of January 28 to find Tom had stopped breathing. She tried to revive him with chest compressions until the ambulance arrived, but her efforts were unsuccessful.

"When I turned on the light, I knew immediately something was wrong," Gabi said. "I tried to save him, but I lost him."

Heart failure occurs when the heart is unable to pump blood efficiently due to weakness or stiffness, reducing the supply of oxygen and nutrients to the organs.

Common causes include high blood pressure and hardening of the arteries caused by cholesterol buildup.

Symptoms include shortness of breath, fatigue, swelling of the legs and ankles, irregular heartbeats, dizziness, nausea, and pain in the arms, jaw, or back.

Experts warn that lifestyle factors, such as stress and unhealthy eating habits, increase the risk of this condition.

According to Mail Online, Laura and Gabi launched a petition this May calling for mandatory health screenings for young people between the ages of 25 and 35 to detect early heart disease.

Laura says, "If Edward and Tom had been screened earlier, the problem could have been detected and their lives saved." Gabi adds, "Mandatory screening can prevent others from suffering the same way we did. Grief is a part of life, but not at this age."

In a related context, the UK Department of Health and Social Care expressed its sympathy for Edward and Tom's families, noting that the NHS Health Checks program targets the most at-risk groups and prevents approximately 500 heart attacks and strokes annually.

The ministry added that it is developing a new online service that will allow individuals to assess their risk of heart disease and diabetes from home.