Queen Máxima surprises in shoulder-baring fuzzy top – before swapping to full leather look

Queen Máxima of the Netherlands opted for a fuzzy orange top as she stepped out to visit Haarlem College with Judith Tielen, the Secretary of State for Youth, Prevention and Sport, to talk about what Haarlem is doing to make young people feel better in their skin.

Items you can buy now in early Black Friday deal from Dyson - including hair tools, vacuum cleaner and more
Shop Dyson’s early Black Friday deals now! (Picture: Metro/Dyson/Getty)

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Although Black Friday doesn’t officially arrive until 28 November, Dyson’s sale has already begun!

And this year’s deals are some of the best we’ve ever seen. No exaggeration. 

So, if you’ve been holding off on upgrading your vacuum cleaner, finally getting your hands on one of Dyson’s incredible hair dryers, or want an air purifier to improve the air quality in your home, now’s the time to pounce. 

Blue robot vacuum cleaner clearing dirt
Dyson’s vacuums boast some of the most powerful motors around. (Picture: Metro/Dyson)

With savings of up to £550, these are the kinds of discounts that don’t come around often and we recommend adding to basket immediately as these bargains are only available while stocks last.

What to beat the rush and get yourself some incredible Dyson tech at a bargain price? Here’s our top picks…

Dyson vacuum cleaner

Dyson V15s Detect Submarine Vacuum Cleaner

Get 2-in-1 with the Dyson V15s Detect Submarine™ cordless vacuum. It provides 240 Air Watts of suction power and can both vacuum and wash hard floors using the Submarine™ wet roller head. A laser illuminates fine dust while a Dust Detect Sensor measures and adapts suction based on debris levels. It includes hair de-tangling technology, runs for up to 60 minutes, and is designed for effective cleaning across multiple floor types.

BUY NOW FOR £599.99 (WAS £799.99) – SAVE £200

Popular airwrap hairtool from Dyson

Dyson Airwrap i.d.™ Multi-Styler and Dryer with Diffuser

Dyson’s Airwrap i.d.™ Multi-Styler and Dryer with Diffuser is engineered to style curly and coily hair, offering smooth drying and defined styling with minimal heat damage. It delivers 1,300 W of power and an airflow of 13.5 l/s, with three heat and three speed settings for controlled styling. Intelligent heat control measures air temperature over 40 times a second to protect hair from excessive heat, while negative ions help reduce static and enhance shine. It can also connect to the MyDyson app via Bluetooth to create a personalised hair profile and save your style settings.

BUY NOW FOR £359.99 (WAS £479.99) – SAVE £120

Blue robot vacuum cleaner

Dyson 360 Vis Nav Robot Vacuum Cleaner

For hands-free cleaning, try Dyson’s 360 Vis Nav™ Robot Vacuum Cleaner which provides 22,000Pa of suction for powerful and efficient cleaning across all floor types. Its intelligent 360° vision system analyses, maps, and navigates the home with precision to ensure thorough coverage. The vacuum can be controlled, customised, and scheduled through the MyDysonᵀᴹ app for convenient, automated cleaning.

BUY NOW FOR £649.99 (WAS £1199.99) – SAVE £550

Dyson fan

Dyson Purifier Humidify+Cool Formaldehyde Fan

Engineered to improve indoor air quality through advanced filtration, the Dyson Purifier Humidify Cool Formaldehyde PH04 Fan combines air purification, humidification, and cooling functions in one device. Its activated carbon filter removes gases, the HEPA H13 filter captures 99.95% of particles, and a catalytic filter breaks down formaldehyde. Air Multiplier™ technology distributes purified, humidified air evenly throughout the room.

BUY NOW FOR £599.99 (WAS £699.99) – SAVE £100

Dyson V11 Extra Vacuum Cleaner

Need something strong? The Dyson V11 Extra Vacuum Cleaner provides 200 Air Watts of fade-free suction, powered by a Dyson Hyperdymium™ motor spinning at up to 125,000rpm. Its Motorbar™ cleaner head with polycarbonate vanes removes and de-tangles hair, while the battery offers up to 60 minutes of run time. The vacuum features 14 Root Cyclones™, filtration that captures 99.99% of particles and a point-and-shoot bin for easy and hygienic emptying.

BUY NOW FOR £349.99 (WAS £499.99) – SAVE £150

Dyson hairdryer

Dyson Supersonic Hair Dryer Nickel/Copper

Worried about heat damage? Dyson’s Supersonic™ Hair Dryer Nickel/Copper is designed for fast drying without extreme heat. Its intelligent heat control helps protect hair’s natural shine, while the Dyson digital motor V9 delivers powerful airflow. Air Multiplier™ technology creates a high-pressure jet of air for efficient drying and precise styling.

BUY NOW FOR £229.99 (WAS £329.99) – SAVE £100

Standing Dyson vacuum cleaner

Dyson Ball Animal Origin Vacuum Cleaner

If you struggle with moving your vacuum, try the Dyson Ball Animal Origin Vacuum Cleaner which uses Ball™ technology for easy manoeuvring around furniture. It includes a 60% larger bin than the Ball™ Animal and a one-touch ejection system for hygienic emptying. With a 14m reach, 99.97% filtration and a set of cleaning tools, it gives you practical cleaning throughout the home.

BUY NOW FOR £229.99 (WAS £329.99) – SAVE £100

Wet Dyson vacuum cleaner

Dyson Wash G1 Wet Floor Cleaner

Hate mopping? The Dyson WashG1™ Wet Floor Cleaner uses a double roller system for effective forward and backward cleaning, removing wet and dry debris in one pass. Counter-rotating rollers prevent smearing, while 26 hydration points ensure even water distribution for a consistent finish. It features separate clean and dirty water tanks, six-point edge cleaning, and a self-cleaning cycle for easy maintenance.

BUY NOW FOR £399.99 (WAS £599.99) – SAVE £200

The tech giants’ deals are not to be missed…

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Strictly co-host Claudia Winkleman just wore the ultimate Little Black Dress and the best news is – it retails for just £29.99.

Three in 10 singletons have been enjoying ‘Try Out Season’ – dating around before settling down with someone for the winter.

A trial lawyer and self-proclaimed ‘argument expert’ shared an easy comeback that anyone can use

As the cold weather arrives and more of us are starting to stay at home – it’s no wonder so many people use this time to find a winter companion and cuffing season begins

The RoC Lip Volumiser on a grey background with angular background imagery.
Forget filler – this RoC lip volumizer is the secret to fuller, juicier lips in minutes (Picture: Metro/RoC)

Metro journalists select and curate the products that feature on our site. If you make a purchase via links on this page we will earn commission – learn more

Looking to achieve fuller, plumper lips without needles? RoC has the perfect solution to help you ditch the fillers and achieve that juicy lip look fast.

Whether you’re on the hunt for the perfect plumping product or, like countless celebrities, looking to dissolve your filler in favour of less invasive methods of plumping, the RoC Derm Correxion Lip Volumizer is a product you’ll want to get your hands on.

Developed with dermatologists and plastic surgeons who really know their stuff, this non-invasive lip plumper has been described as ‘excellent’, leaving lips ‘definitely fuller’ immediately after use.

And when we say immediately, we really mean it.

RoC Derm Correxion Lip Volumizer with Hyaluronic Acid 10ml

Working instantly and over time, this lip product works to deliver topical, dramatic plumping you can really see thanks to the formulation of 25% filling ingredients including Hyaluronic Acid Filling Spheres.

shop £23.99 (save £6)

In clinical trials, 90% of users saw fuller, plumper lips in just three minutes, while after four weeks there showed to be a 2x visible volume improvements in the lips.

In the same clinical trials, after two weeks 87% said they’d use the RoC Derm Correxion Lip Volumizer instead of lip injections. That’s a big statement.

In clinical trials, 90% of users saw fuller, plumper lips in just three minutes, while after four weeks there showed to be a 2x visible volume improvements in the lips (Picture: RoC)

Working instantly and over time, this hydrating lip product works to deliver topical, dramatic plumping you can really see thanks to the formulation of 25% filling ingredients including Hyaluronic Acid Filling Spheres.

These Filling Spheres really do what they say on the tin, volumizing on contact with the lips for immediate fullness and 48hrs of deep hydration.

Alongside this you’ll find RoC’s powerful Pro-Collagen Peptide that actively smooths for younger-looking lips with more defined contours. The proof is written all over the before and after photos, which show visibly plumper, smoother and fuller lips.

Working instantly and over time, this plumper delivers dramatic plumping you can really see thanks to the formulation of 25% filling ingredients including Hyaluronic Acid Filling Spheres (Picture: RoC)

Another thing we love about the plumper is that is doesn’t give that eye-watering sting or burn like many other plumping lip products.

Instead, it simply bathes your lips in a comforting and hydrating gel that leaves them feeling quenched and looking stunning all day.

But don’t just take our word for it: countless reviews have noted how impressed they are with the lip plumper, saying it adds ‘natural volume’ and raving that they ‘noticed a difference after the first day’.

‘Fabulous!’ Raved one five-star reviewer. ‘This is something I can really say does exactly what it says, it works a treat. I have only used it twice for going out but both times it was fabulous.

In the same clinical trials, after two weeks 87% said they’d use the RoC Derm Correxion Lip Volumizer instead of lip injections. Not bad at all (Picture: RoC)

‘I put it on about an hour before applying my lipstick and my lips were definitely fuller. No burning, no pain, will definitely be buying again.’

Another added: ‘This by far beats out the competition when it comes to lip plumping go this route and avoid the fillers!’

‘This is such a nice product. I used it all month prior to a wedding and it made my lips so nice and was a good prep for the lip I wore in the wedding photos!’ Wrote a third.

Well colour us convinced…

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A close-up of a pair of black Clarks loafers on a white background, showing the sides, fronts and heels.
Behold the mighty Clarks loafer! (Picture: Clarks)

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Forget 34th street, a miracle has instead happened on my feet, for I have found a pair of leather patent loafers that haven’t shredded my dogs like a nightmare on Elm Street.

You didn’t think it was possible, did you? 

The shoes are from Clarks, and are, if I do say so myself, brilliantly chic while being wildly comfortable.

You may have read my piece on the trainers that left me singing the praises of a good Clarks shoe (I was shocked, dear reader) and it seems my weary trotters have found another pair to bed into.

Usually, I’d assume a pair of shoes that are perfectly wearable from the off are going to have some sort of soft leather outing (always grey), perhaps a zipper or velcro fastening, an orthopaedic footbed…

Not these babies. 

The Clarks Nomad Loafer arrived and upon first inspection, the rigid sole and little give in the leather gave me pause. These are going to take at least 10 wears to feel somewhat comfortable, I thought, as I dug out my thickest socks to get going. Because nothing this cute doesn’t hurt,right?

Clarks Offer

Right now, you can get 10% off spends over £65 and 20% off spends over £100.

Ts and Cs: Applicable to full-priced items only, cannot be combined with another offer, promotion or discount.

Expires on 31/12/2025 11:59pm (BST)

Head to Clarks to check out the offer.

I found the one pair of loafers you don't need to break in
With a patent leather outer and the iconic Clarks sole, the shoe is a sturdy steed (Picture: Clarks)

The shoes are part of the mighty Clarks Originals catalogue, so I know I’m not sitting in the cheap seats (seeing as they are £160 at full price), but looks are certainly deceiving, and upon the first wear, I was off to the races.

For decades, Clarks Originals have been the unofficial uniform of artists, musicians, and tastemakers who, as the brand brags, ‘don’t follow trends – they create them’ (something no one has ever said about me, but I’ll try and fake it with the shoes at least). 

People much cooler than I have riffed about the shoes in pop culture over the years, from Wu-Tang Clan rapping about the Wallabee moccasin in their 2000 song Gravel Pit, to Oasis’ Noel Gallagher creating his own version of the brand’s famous Desert Boot.

The shoes have appeared on album covers, in films, and on the feet of cultural pioneers. I’m in great company.

What I loved about the Nomad Loafer

The shoe itself is described as ‘a modern evolution of the iconic OG Wallabee Loafer,’ with the Wallabee known as the cool kid of the Clarks family, with the unmistakable Clarks black pebble crepe sole. 

These babies will get a solid rotation this winter (Picture: Mel Evans)

I went big and wore mine to the office, without taking a spare pair of shoes. A glutton for punishment, you may say, but thankfully, these saw me through the day with only the slightest of rubs on my left heel. No biggie.

A shoe that is made for the wide-foot girlies, the loafer gave my toes room to wriggle away, but the foot still felt contained and supported around the ankle.

Also, shout out to the crepe sole keeping things quiet. It may be solid, but no one is hearing me creeping around the house at 7am or running up and down stairs. The ultimate creeping shoe.

What I didn’t love about the Nomad Loafer

As with all good leather shoes, they are going to take a bit of time to wear in – not to be confused with breaking in. What I mean by wearing in is, the leather is still stiff, meaning I needed a helping hand from a shoehorn (only the first time) and my inserts don’t quite fit – yet.

Luckily, due to that solid sole, my arches are supported in the meantime. I can also already feel the leather moulding to my feet.

Being a wide-fit design, I will say it took a bit of getting used to not feeling like I was wearing clown shoes. Cut to me – much like a dog wearing a cone of shame – accidentally treading on a colleague’s toes as I misjudged how wide my foot was.  

Wide stompers aside, these feel like the perfect winter shoe that will go with casual looks and jeans for walks around the park, as well as tights and skirts for the festive season as I twirl around the dancefloor.

Not that you’ll hear me, so watch out for your toes.

For more information and to shop the collection, visit Clarks Originals.

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Dahaba Ali Hussen (head/shoulders only) at home
I want to be seen, heard and treated, explains Dahaba (Picture: Dahaba Ali Hussen)

‘Well, you’re not going to bleed to death, are you?’ the doctor in A&E said to me. 

I was dumbfounded.

Earlier that day, doubled over in unimaginable pain, I had decided to finally attend A&E. This was a really difficult decision to make, because I was afraid of not being listened to. 

I gripped the plastic seat as I tried to even out my voice, before I responded: ‘Are you even going to examine me?’, gesturing towards my bloated stomach.

‘You’ll have to wait to be referred for a scan by your GP,’ the doctor responded.

I was sent home without being fully examined. I didn’t have any blood tests done, or even get my blood pressure read. 

It seemed like as soon as the doctor determined it was a women’s health issue, he told me I would need a gynaecologist, and that was that. It wasn’t worth investigating. My pain did not matter.

My symptoms started in March this year. Before that, I’d wake up at 5am and have early morning exercise sessions followed by a high-protein meal and a productive work block.

But since spring, I had barely been able to get out of bed, experiencing various horrible symptoms like extreme fatigue and painful bloating, to the point where my jeans no longer fit. 

Dahaba Ali Hussen: I took up running - my family's response horrified me
I was sleeping around 14 hours a day and in non-stop pain (Picture: Dahaba Ali Hussen)

Everything came to a head in September after a friend’s wedding in France. When my fiancé and I arrived back in the UK, I could barely climb the stairs to our flat. I felt broken.

I went to the GP, and they sent me for a whole bunch of blood tests which came back inconclusive so I decided to call the GP again and ask for help.

At this point, I was sleeping around 14 hours a day and in non-stop pain.

Sadly, the GP was dismissive, asking me what more I wanted to happen? I was confused and upset. I want to be seen, heard and treated. 

I went for that first A&E visit a week later, when my symptoms worsened and I couldn’t stand to be in pain any longer. After I was dismissed from the hospital without being examined, I felt hopeless. 

Dahaba Ali Hussen: I took up running - my family's response horrified me
With my white male partner there, the doctor was more sympathetic to my case (Picture: Dahaba Ali Hussen)

Later that week, my symptoms and distended stomach had worsened considerably, so my fiancé and I took a second trip to A&E (he hadn’t been able to come with me the first time because he’d been working outside of London). 

The difference was astounding.

With my white male partner there, corroborating what I was saying, the doctor felt more receptive and was even more sympathetic to my case as my fiancé spoke for me. Things like emergency blood tests were actually done. 

I was still told to wait for a gynaecological scan. In the meantime, I had to live with my symptoms and reduced quality of life.

I spent weeks living with extreme symptoms like nausea and no word from my doctors about my scan. That, coupled with a downward turn in my mental health where I felt increasingly low and apathetic, made me come to the decision to seek private healthcare.

Dahaba Ali Hussen: I took up running - my family's response horrified me
It has long been documented that Black women’s health is under-researched and that our symptoms can be treated less seriously than our white counterparts (Picture: Dahaba Ali Hussen)

I needed answers and I needed them quickly. Thankfully, I was in the fortunate position where I was able to pay for private healthcare and within a week I had a diagnosis, an issue with my uterus, and a treatment plan. 

The doctors who finally diagnosed me felt like they were in less of a rush. They made me feel like I was actually being listened to. 

Finally I was able to have an actual conversation with a doctor where I could voice my health concerns. I was in a space where my worries were received and heard.

Within a couple of weeks, I felt dramatically better. I could feel my mood changing as my physical symptoms started to dissipate and then disappear. I slowly went back to work and started feeling more like myself. 

I had the means to afford private healthcare, but many women cannot. We shouldn’t have to pay to be heard.

Dahaba Ali Hussen: I took up running - my family's response horrified me
No Black woman should have to prove her pain just to receive care (Picture: Dahaba Ali Hussen)

It has long been documented that Black women’s health is under-researched and that our symptoms can be treated less seriously than our white counterparts. Studies suggest stark inequalities in diagnosis, treatment and aftercare. 

As a Black woman, I think a lot about how I present – that is, how others perceive me in certain situations based on how I dress and act.

Often when I go for GP appointments, I’m unwell and in a tracksuit. That, coupled with my gender and race, makes me wonder whether healthcare professionals will take my pain seriously.

I definitely don’t think they took it seriously on this occasion. While I’m thankful to have my long-awaited diagnosis, my experience in not being believed was fraught and upsetting.

I do believe awareness of racial bias in the medical field is growing, with calls for greater representation in medical textbooks, for example. But I don’t think this is enough: we need more acknowledgement from authorities of discrimination and prejudice, and we need to take action to tackle it.

At the end of the day, there needs to be better education about biases, representation and empathy in women’s healthcare – because no woman should have to fight to be believed.

And no Black woman should have to prove her pain just to receive care. Let alone bring in a white man to back them up.

Do you have a story you’d like to share? Get in touch by emailing Ross.Mccafferty@metro.co.uk. 

Share your views in the comments below.

Sarah Power was diagnosed with Huntington’s Disease in her twenties (Picture: Supplied)

When she was just 23, Sarah Power sat with her mum in a hospital room, waiting to hear whether she had tested positive for a disease that would drastically cut her life expectancy

‘It was a really harrowing moment,’ Sarah, now 41, recalls. ‘Nothing could prepare me for the news I was about to receive.’

That day she was told she carried the gene mutation for Huntington’s Disease, a fatal neurodegenerative disease which presents as a triad of progressive psychiatric, cognitive, and motor symptoms, and would develop it at some point in her lifetime. 

‘I fell to pieces. But it wasn’t just the pain I was feeling that hurt, it was knowing how my mum felt – grieving to see how much my diagnosis affected her,’ Sarah tells Metro.

The diagnosis, although shocking, hadn’t come as a huge surprise because both her dad and his mum, Sarah’s grandmother, also had Huntington’s

‘I vividly remember sitting in our living room when I was five, being told by someone from the Huntington’s Disease Association that my grandma had this disease,’ she tells Metro. ‘They were explaining it was hereditary, which didn’t mean a huge amount to me at the time, but I did feel this darkness in the room. My grandma had been a smoker, and I remember naively thinking I would never smoke so that I wouldn’t get Huntington’s.’

Eight years later, suffering from frequent falls, involuntary movements, and the inability to eat, Sarah’s grandmother passed away, the cause of death listed as Huntington’s. 

Sarah’s dad insisted he’d had genetic testing and didn’t carry the gene mutation, and would constantly deny he was at risk. 

‘He stuck with that story until the day he died,’ Sarah remembers. ‘He just wouldn’t go there as a proud man. I think it was his way of coping – just shutting it all down.’

Huntington’s Disease ran in Sarah’s family (Picture: Supplied)
Sarah’s dad lived in denial of the fact he had Huntington’s Disease (Picture: Supplied)

As a teenager, Sarah was desperate to get tested herself, but knew it wouldn’t be possible until she reached adulthood. ‘I thought it would be better to know, rather than not knowing,’ she explains.

Soon after her 18th birthday, she received a letter inviting her to attend a genetic counselling appointment, informing Sarah they had timely information they needed to share with her.

‘They knew my dad had it, and they were just telling me without telling me,’ she adds.

For two years, Sarah underwent counselling to ensure she was prepared for the diagnosis that might lay ahead, followed by blood neurological tests.

And then, it was confirmed in that hospital room when she was just 23 – Sarah would at some point in her life have Huntington’s Disease. 

‘I cried more than I thought possible, I just couldn’t stop,’ she says. ‘The world was still turning, but it was as though it was stood still for a while. It was so hard having to tell many of my friends over the phone. I couldn’t talk, I was shattered, I felt  numb.’

Waiting in Doctors Examination Room
Sarah’s life changed irreversibly on the day she found out she had the gene mutation (Picture: Getty Images)

Sarah phoned her brother, who at first said he didn’t want to be tested. Eventually he agreed and discovered he didn’t have the same gene mutation. Although the siblings don’t talk about it, Sarah suspects he found the negative test result almost as hard as her positive test – ‘like survivor’s guilt,’ she says.

‘And then a great friend of mine had the idea to book tickets to go backpacking for a few months,’ adds Sarah. ‘It was the best thing I could have done. We saved up as much money as possible, and then just went – to Brazil, Bora Bora, New Zealand, and Thailand – making as many memories as possible.’

However, escaping didn’t take the fear away, and each time Sarah told a friend or family member, she was reminded that this was real. 

‘When you have watched loved ones die, knowing you’re going to face it too – I still can’t get that out of my head,’ she explains. 

When Sarah’s dad died from Huntington’s in 2017 at the age of 63, even though she had expected it, and grieved his death even before his passing, she still felt enormous grief

Sarah was determined to live her life to the fullest, despite how difficult her diagnosis was (Picture: Supplied)

‘It was a relief as well,’ she admits. ‘He was so poorly, and although he had once had a good quality of life, no longer did at the very end.’

Before her dad became ill, he was ‘really sporty,’ so watching him become being bedridden was really tough on Sarah. 

‘It’s so cruel,’ she says. ‘Dad loved food, chocolate in particular, so the day he needed a feeding tube fitted was really hard. It was almost like the last bit of pleasure taken away from him.’

When Sarah met her now ex-husband, she told him about how she would at some point become unwell with Huntington’s. 

Even though she had previously decided not to have kids so as not to pass it on, after marrying, the couple decided to pay for IVF, which involved screening for the gene and would allow them to have a family while not passing on the genetic mutation. 

After losing two babies, Sarah was able to carry her first daughter full-term. 

‘We had our happy little family and thought we were done,’ she remembers. ‘But shockingly, I became pregnant naturally in 2021. I still can’t get my head around it. We went to a six-week scan and I heard the baby’s heartbeat. It was such a strong heartbeat. At 12 weeks, we could have had the baby tested for Huntington’s, but if the test was positive, they would have terminated the pregnancy. I just couldn’t bear to take her life away. I wanted to let fate do its thing.’

Now a stay-at-home mum with her two daughters, both so full of life, Sarah has no regrets – but she has spent years suppressing fears for herself, and for her second daughter. 

Sarah’s first daughter does not have the gene mutation, but Sarah’s second daughter may be diagnosed with Huntington’s later in her life (Picture: Supplied)

‘Normally, onset is between 30 and 50,’ she says. ‘I am pre-symptomatic, but it feels like I’m a ticking time bomb. It’s made me live my life differently though – knowing that I will get ill at some point. I don’t take anything for granted, and feel grateful for what I have today. I just try to live my life as much as I can, and I’m glad I’m still here.’

With some of the earliest signs of Huntington’s being changes in personality, clumsiness, loss of balance, and difficult learning new things, Sarah can’t help but worry if she drops something or makes a mistake. 

‘I wonder, is this the start for me?’ she says. ‘I try to stay positive, but some days are harder than others. I just want and desperately need to stay fit and healthy long enough for a treatment to help me.’

After many years, Sarah was offered a glimmer of hope at the end of September this year, when she opened an email from the Huntington’s Disease Association, announcing a new treatment. 

‘I had to read the email several times – I couldn’t sleep that night,’ she says with a smile. ‘I’ve never let myself think about what it would be like to see my grandchildren, or whether I would need a pension. I just never dreamed that a treatment would come along. It’s still sinking in – a pinch me moment. It’s the breakthrough we’ve all been hoping and praying for. 

Now, I might be able to grow into an old lady and enjoy all the things my mum has.’

The new treatment for Huntington’s Disease

Cath Stanley BEM, Chief Executive Huntington’s Disease Association tells Metro:

‘Around 8,000 people in the UK are living with Huntington’s disease, an inherited condition that slowly takes away control over movement, thinking and behaviour.

Another 32,000 are at risk, unsure whether they’ll one day face the same future. Huntington’s affects the brain’s nervous system due to a faulty gene.

For many, symptoms begin in their 30s or 40s just as careers, families, and futures are taking shape. As the disease progresses, people often lose their independence and need round-the-clock care.

We are thrilled by the early results of this new Huntington’s disease treatment, which suggest it could slow the condition’s progression by up to 75%.

The full trial results haven’t been published yet, and the company is seeking approval in the US before applying to European and UK regulators, which could take several years. It also appears it may only work for people at certain stages of the disease.

While the procedure is currently a major operation, lasting more than 12 hours, this is a huge step forward.’