A DEVOTED dad marked his 50th birthday by taking part in a 1,100-mile charity cycle to raise thousands of pounds to celebrate his son bravely surviving meningitis.

Duncan Tuffrey, of Bournemouth, said he felt powerless when his six-year-old son Adam contracted the disease.

“We felt so helpless – we seriously believed we might lose Adam. It was heartbreaking.”

In the space of 24 hours Adam suddenly developed a temperature and painful joints. Doctors initially diagnosed a virus and prescribed painkillers, but within hours he had a raging headache and rash.

Adam was rushed to Southampton General Hospital before he collapsed.

Adam remembers ‘excruciating bright lights beaming down’, which was photophobia or sensitivity to light. He also hallucinated and suffered severe head pain.

Adam, now 19, said: “I’ll never forget when my mum leaned over and kissed me, then my dad did and they pulled away – why were they leaving when I wanted them the most?

“The nurse ushered them out – they were gone. I cried and was scared that I wouldn’t see my parents again.

“It wasn’t until a few years later that I was told how pivotal that night was.”

Adam returned home two weeks later to start on the road to recovery and has supported Meningitis Now ever since.

Duncan added: “Adam’s now a talented musician, but he could have lost his hearing.

“So we also want to help people with hearing impairment.”

To mark his birthday and celebrate his son’s recovery, Duncan cycled from Land’s End to John O’Groats in 14 days with his friends Dave Smith, Pete Brown and John Preston.

The foursome hopes to raise £4,000, which would fund a year’s specialist therapy for a child suffering hearing impairment from meningitis.

To donate please, visit uk.virginmoneygiving.com/team/lpontour