Gordon Aikman dies aged 31

Gordon on the left with his husband Joe Pike. The couple married in March 2015.

 

Gordon Aikman, the Motor Neurone Disease (MND) patient and campaigner, has died. He was 31 years old.

Gordon was diagnosed with Motor Neurone Disease (MND) at the age of 29 in 2014. Following his diagnosis, he formed the Gordon’s Fightback campaign  successfully lobbying the First Minister to double the number of MND nurses and fund them through the NHS. He also raised over £500,000 for research to help fund a cure for the terminal condition.
He received a British Empire Medal in the Queen’s 2015 Birthday Honours and an Honorary Doctorate from the University of Edinburgh in the same year for his work to transform care for people with MND and efforts to find a cure.
His family said in a statement: 
“We are heartbroken. Gordon was beautiful, kind, funny and utterly determined. He achieved more in the few short years after his diagnosis with MND than many of us do in a lifetime. Gordon’s campaigning and fundraising has truly inspired people, changed lives across Scotland and we are so proud of him. We will miss him terribly.”

Gordon dealt with his illness with great humour and only on 1 January I smiled at the black humour in this tweet:

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Joe Pike tweeted this morning :

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Commenting on the death of Gordon Aikman, Scottish Liberal Democrat leader Willie Rennie MSP said: “This is incredibly sad news. Gordon was a generous and determined gentleman. My thoughts go out to Joe, Gordon’s family and friends.

“His contribution during the independence referendum campaign was both intelligent and joyful. I have great memories of working with him. He has left a great legacy that no one will forget.”

Gordon’s main achievements include securing a doubling of the number of MND nurses, transforming care for patients with MND in Scotland. He also campaigned for the Living Wage for carers along with others.