Eight Year Old with Rare Fatal Disease Is Fighting For His Life by Competing In Triathlons

It can be heart rending to see some children around the world affected by rare diseases that attack them through no fault of their own. Take Jake Vella for instance. Jake is only eight years old and afflicted by a hormonal disease that may not allow him to live beyond 20. What is even shocking is the fact that he still has to push himself to remain healthy all because his disease makes him put on weight and there’s no stopping it.

Despite his conditions, the Maltese boy with ROHHAD disease is a little champ who dreams of competing in triathlons and replicating the success of Great Britain’s Brownlee brothers.

1 Jake suffers from a rare disease that has no cure

Jake Vella from Malta is only eight years old. He is a school going kid who suffers from a rare disease called ROHHAD or rapid onset obesity with hypothalamic dysregulation, hypoventilation and autonomic dysregulation. He was diagnosed with the disease in 2015 and there is no cure for it. In fact it is a life threatening condition and although he may live to be 20, the average life expectancy is just 5 to 9 years old. Life is cruel as we know it and little Jake has been dealt the cruelest blow of them all.

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