{"id":10421,"date":"2017-03-10T08:06:57","date_gmt":"2017-03-10T08:06:57","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/freeonlinetranslators.net\/news\/english\/the-biggest-killer-youve-never-heard-of\/"},"modified":"2017-03-10T08:06:57","modified_gmt":"2017-03-10T08:06:57","slug":"the-biggest-killer-youve-never-heard-of","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/freeonlinetranslators.net\/news\/english\/the-biggest-killer-youve-never-heard-of\/","title":{"rendered":"The biggest killer you’ve never heard of"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"PatrickImage copyright PAtrick Kane <\/figure>\n

"I flat-lined seven times, it was very uncertain for a long time whether I would make it," says Patrick Kane.<\/p>\n

He nearly died from a condition that kills more people in the UK each year than bowel, breast and prostate cancer combined.<\/p>\n

Patrick was just nine months old when one morning he became poorly, floppy and "generally unresponsive". <\/p>\n

The family GP said he just needed Calpol, but Patrick's mother was still concerned and took him to hospital.<\/p>\n

But on the journey things got rapidly worse.<\/p>\n

"It really was a sudden thing... upon arrival I had multiple organ failure," he says.<\/p>\n

Patrick spent three and a half months in St Mary's hospital in London, lost his right leg below the knee, his left arm and fingers on his right hand.<\/p>\n

Image copyright PAtrick Kane <\/figure>\n

The 19-year-old is now studying biochemistry at university in Edinburgh. <\/p>\n

What he had was sepsis.<\/p>\n

"Either you know someone who's had sepsis, or you've never heard of it," Patrick tells the BBC.<\/p>\n

Sepsis is triggered by infections, but is actually a problem with our own immune system going into overdrive.<\/p>\n

It starts with an infection that can come from anywhere - even a contaminated cut or insect bite.<\/p>\n

Normally, your immune system kicks in to fight the infection and stop it spreading. <\/p>\n

But if the infection manages to spread quickly round the body, then the immune system will launch a massive immune response to fight it. <\/p>\n

This can also be a problem as the immune response can have catastrophic effects on the body, leading to septic shock, organ failure and even death.<\/p>\n

In the UK, there are 44,000 deaths from the condition each year.<\/p>\n

The UK Sepsis Trust lists six symptoms be aware of:<\/p>\n