Alzheimer's is a cruel disease, and once diagnosed there's no return for the sufferer as their family and friends can only watch as their loved one becomes more distant.
So to fight the disease a woman from Newent is taking on the biggest challenge of her life by running the London Marathon.
Clare Page is aiming to raise at least £3,000 for the Alzheimer's Society charity with the run for her mother who was diagnosed with the disease.
She has been pounding the streets of Newent and the surrounding country lanes ahead of her first ever marathon on Sunday April 26.
It comes as her next-door neighbour Charmaine Ellis and her friend Becca Yeandle raised a staggering £11,000 for Cancer Research UK by climbing Mount Kilimanjaro.
Clare said she is also running for her father, her family and anyone else affected by the disease.
She said: "I see first-hand how Alzheimer's has changed my mother as a person. 880,000 families are affected by the disease, so I wanted to do something that isn't easy.
"I will be really out of my comfort zone. I'm looking forward to it but I'm very nervous.
"Everyone should be inspired by what Charmaine and Becca did. In Newent there are a lot of people who do a lot for charity. People here are generous and are very supportive of everyone's activities."
Aside from being put through her paces as early as 5.30am by personal trainer Alex Penning, Clare has come up with a number of fundraising ideas to reach her £3,000 target.
She is hosting a charity Bingo evening on Friday and will hold a cake sale on February 28 from 9am to 12pm in Newent Market.
Clare has also compiled a book of recipes which will be available soon and will include contributions from celebrities including London Mayor Boris Johnson and actress and Alzheimer's Society Patron Dame Judi Dench.
Clare said: "It will be hard but I'm working on my strategy. My personal trainer is helping me to look at nutrition.
"I'm hoping all the effort I'm putting in will see me run across that finish line and not crawl over it."
Charity events in Newent also helped Charmaine and Becca exceed their fundraising targets before they reached the summit of Africa's highest mountain last week.
They scaled almost 6,000 metres of jagged rocks and freezing temperatures in just five days to complete the challenge.
