A PENARTH family has been presented with an award after raising more than £2,500 for charity by climbing Mount Kilimanjaro.

Robert Wilcox, his wife Bridgette and children Sam, aged 16, and Rose, aged 14, climbed Mount Kilimanjaro in aid of the International Glaucoma Association (IGA) in July last year.

They were presented with an award in recognition of the most money raised in 2014 at the IGA AGM earlier this month.

Robert, a member of Penarth and Dinas Runners, said: "We undertook the Mount Kilimanjaro challenge climbing the seven day Lemosho route which Comic Relief followed in 2009, summiting together the snow capped peak at 5895m on July 17 at sunrise.

"It was a challenge both physically and mentally for everyone which got increasingly harder the higher we climbed as the oxygen levels in the air dropped culminating in the 16 hour effort on summit night up to Uhuru Peak and then back down to the camp.

"The climb up Mount Kilimanjaro is within the capability of most people. A memorial plaque to a climber on the mountain which read “Attitude before Altitude” encapsulate what was needed to succeed. We were very proud of both Sam and Rose who were at the very youngest of the age limit allowed to attempt the climb and whose attitude throughout the challenge was brilliant."

He added: "We decided as a family to raise funds for the IGA as I have glaucoma. My glaucoma has no symptoms and would have gone completely unnoticed if it had not been picked up when I was 40 nearly 10 years ago during a regular eye test at the opticians. If it had not been diagnosed I might not have found out about it until until after my eye sight had been permanently damaged. Glaucoma if untreated can cause permanent damage to the periphery vision and ultimately blindness. Treatment by the use of eye drops is often all that is necessary to prevent this from occurring.

"As my glaucoma was picked up early, I started with no treatment whatsoever just monitoring of the condition, which then progressed on to eye drops and then in 2008 I had to have an urgent operation on my left eye as the glaucoma took a dramatic turn for the worse. This operation had to be revised three months later and then I had to have the same operation on the right eye 15 months later. I now have to put eye drops in my left eye every day to treat the condition and the right eye is stable without further treatment at present but I still attend the opthalmology dept of UHW on a regular basis for check ups.

Glaucoma affects about two per cent of people over the age of 40 and estimates are that around half of the 600,000 people in the UK who have it do not know they have it. It is very often symptomless. Tests for the signs of Glaucoma are undertaken by opticians in the course of normal eye tests and referrals made where necessary as in my case to UHW. The risk of glaucoma increases as people get older and regular testing is recommended from the age of 40. If you are long or short sighted or have diabetes or low blood pressure or are of African-Caribbean descent you are at greater risk. Close blood relatives of someone with glaucoma are four times more likely to develop it than those without close blood relatives with the condition.

Rob, of Westbourne Road, added: "We were honoured to be invited to London on March 13 by the International Glaucoma Association to receive an award from Keith Barton for raising £2,750 which was the most money raised for the IGA in 2014.

"Awareness of the condition and regular eye testing is the key to protecting your eye sight against damage through glaucoma. We all take our eyesight for granted until it is threatened and only then do we consider what an effect it could have upon our lives if it was damaged. National Glaucoma awareness week takes place from June 8-14 which itself may pass underneath many people’s radar who have good eyesight and have not been into an opticians for years as they have good eyesight and don’t need to. I would like to urge anyone who has not had an eye test in the last 10 years to go and have an eye check up, as you should not leave the health of your eyes to chance. Further information regarding Glaucoma can be accessed via http://www.glaucoma-association.com/index.html or via sightline on 01233 648170.”