Empowered Health: ‘Dancing keeps me out of the hospital’

At 18, Darren Kerr can’t remember a day when he hasn’t had to swallow at least 50 pills.

Diagnosed with cystic fibrosis as an infant, at times he has been so ill he’s relied on a feeding tube to survive.

Cystic fibrosis is an inherited disease that causes thick, sticky mucus to build up in the lungs, digestive tract and other parts of the body. A life-threatening condition, it is one of the most common chronic lung diseases in children and young adults in Canada.

Kerr, the only member of his family known to have the disease, keeps it at bay through a combination of drugs, physiotherapy and something he credits with boosting his lung function to the point where he leads a fairly normal life: dancing.

“When I was in kindergarten I got a feeding tube and I started doing physio for a couple of years,” said Kerr. “But when I was eight years old, I saw Riverdance on TV and said, ‘That’s really cool, I want to do that,’ so I started up with it.”

Almost immediately, Kerr said, he could feel that his lung function was improving.

“I kept doing it; I love dancing, and it’s really good cardio,” said Kerr. “Dancing keeps me out of the hospital.”

Kerr dances with the O’Connor O’Brien School of Irish Dance and participates in local, regional and international competitions.

Last April, he travelled to Dublin to compete in the world championships.

While he practices less frequently in the summer, during the school year Kerr dances two or three times a week, for two hours each time.

Kerr, who graduated from Sutherland secondary school last spring and is taking the year off to work before attending college in September, said that day to day he rarely notices his disease any more.

That’s despite the fact he still takes an average of 50 pills a day. If he is going to be eating more fatty foods on a given day, he explained, then he’ll take more pills to balance it out.

“It’s a pain taking my pills and doing my physio before work, but I’m breathing, and I’m alive,” he said. “Sometimes I can notice a wheezing in my chest, so I go in to the doctor and they put me on antibiotics, and I get back to dance.”

Kerr visits the hospital every three months for a routine sputum culture test, where the secretions from his lungs and bronchi (tubes that carry air to the lungs) are monitored for bacteria that cause infection.

He also regularly sees dietitians, has blood work taken and does physiotherapy, although in that area Irish dancing has served him well.

Kerr’s parents are longtime supporters of his passion for dancing; in fact, it’s become a family affair.

“They all come out to the competitions, and my dad especially will get really into it, comparing the competitions,” said Kerr. “Keeping the cardio up keeps me healthier for longer.”

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Empowered Health airs Thursdays on CJDC (11 a.m.); CHEK-TV Vancouver and Victoria, CFJC and CKPG (7 p.m.); and CHAT (7:30 p.m.). The show airs Tuesdays on CFTK at 11:30 a.m. You can also view episodes online at vancouversun.com/empoweredhealth