As some of you know, I have been living in Brighton with my family for almost 2 years now, since I graduated from UVM. I have primarily been caring for my father, who was diagnosed with a disease called Frontotemporal dementia in 2016. Before my uncle Steve's passing this year, my family and I were his caretakers as well. Steve was diagnosed with FTD in 2014.

Frontotemporal dementia is a neurodegenerative disease characterised by degeneration and neuron loss in the frontal and temporal lobes of the brain, causing changes in behavior, personality and/or difficulty with producing or comprehending language.

Mutations in the progranulin (GRN) gene are a major cause of familial frontotemporal dementia, which is the root cause of my family's diagnoses. Dozens of disease-causing progranulin mutations have been identified, and most result in lowered levels of progranulin. Progranulin is primarily an endo-lysosomal protein, responsible for neuron health and upkeep. I majored in neuroscience at school because my paternal grandfather had this disease as well. I never got the chance to meet my grandfather, and was profoundly curious as to why we knew so little about the disease that took his life. The organization which I'm fundraising for, The Bluefield Project, is focused on finding therapeutics for FTD caused by mutations in the progranulin gene.

In about a month, I am running a half marathon in San Francisco. I would love to use this opportunity to garner support for research into this disease, and make an impact in a field which I care so passionately about. 

Thank you for your time, and for reading this message. 

Harrison Kent and the Kent family.