George Rainsford left Casualty in February after playing Dr Ethan Hardy for nine years. One of Ethan’s major storylines saw him discover that he had inherited Huntington’s disease from his mother.
The rare condition stops parts of the brain working with symptoms such as memory loss, difficulty concentrating and depression.
Huntington’s gets worse over time and is usually fatal after around 20 years, according to the NHS.
While George’s character was still asymptomatic when he left the show, the 40-year-old actor says he would be very keen to continue the storyline.
“The producers were really kind and there were just a few factors basically, I was living away from home for a long period and I also was missing doing other sorts of acting roles. So I spoke to them about an extended break.
“As yet, there’s no return date planned, but I think the door is open and I would be really interested in sort of doing another stint at some point.“
Huntington’s Disease is a rarely known disease, and George says he did not know much about it before he was given the storyline.
As he was researching, he became involved with the Huntington’s Disease Association and has been working to raise awareness of the condition.
He explained: “I wanted to be authentic and make sure I was telling that story correctly. I wanted to shine a light I suppose on a condition that not a lot of people know about, and I didn’t know about to be honest.
“I wanted to make sure I did it right.”
The charity has launched its Mindful of Huntington’s campaign during the condition’s awareness month.
The charity is also taking part in the Big Give Kind2Mind campaign where any donations made between the May 15 and 22 will be doubled.
You can find out more here.
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