LEIGH MP Andy Burnham is backing a hard-hitting campaign highlighting the tragic condition known as sudden cardiac death in the young.

Postcards featuring the photos of eight people who lost their lives suddenly to previously undetected heart conditions are to be distributed to draw attention to the issue.

None of them had apparent symptoms or a history of ill health, although it is widely acknowledged that many of the hundreds of deaths which occur every year could be prevented if simple cardiac screening was made more accessible.

The charity Cardiac Risk in the Young (CRY) is behind the campaign.

Mr Burnham said: "The public should take notice of this important campaign."