A SON shaved off the dreadlocks he sported for more than a decade in memory of his father who died suddenly from deep vein thrombosis.

Dave Wright had joked with his dad, also named David, earlier this year, about losing his distinctive hairstyle.

But tragically in May, David senior, died at the age of 63. An undiscovered blood clot in his leg broke off and travelled to his lungs, instantly stopping his heart. He had suffered a Bilateral Pulmonary Embolism.

David had recently retired from a career as a team leader working with handicapped adults for St Helens Social Services.

Now his 32-year-old son has moved to raise money for Lifeblood: The Thrombosis Charity.

He said: “My Dad believed in helping others and he would literally help anyone that needed it.

“In that same spirit, I want to help raise awareness of the symptoms and dangers that these silent killers pose in the hope that no one else dies or loses a loved one from a blood clot.

Despite having his dreadlocks a decade, it took Dave just 45 minute to shave his head and friends and family dug deep to help raise £910 for Lifeblood, smashing his £200 target.

Founded in 2002, Lifeblood: The Thrombosis Charity aims to increase awareness of thrombosis among the public and health professionals and to raise research funds to improve patient care.

Dave added: “I would like to say a huge thank you to everyone for sponsoring me and for donating to Lifeblood. Awareness is crucial to the work they do and for me personally it has been amazing to see how many people have gotten behind what I'm doing.

“It’s taking some getting used to. I'm still a little confused every time I catch sight of my reflection.”

Katherine Johnson, Lifeblood's project manager said: “Dave’s sponsored 'dread shave' seemed fitting after a conversation prior to his death where David joked with his father that he would 'cut off' his dreads that he had had for 10 years.

“We at Lifeblood are extremely grateful for his fundraising.”

Each year, 1 in every 1,000 people in the UK is affected by deep vein thrombosis (DVT).

Anyone can develop DVT, but it becomes more common with age as well as other risk factors including a family history of blood clots and inactivity.

Prof Beverley Hunt, Lifeblood's medical director, said: "Despite pulmonary embolism appearing as a cause of death on less than 20,000 death certificates in England, it has been estimated that there may be up to 60,000 deaths a year. Many pulmonary emboli get "missed" or forgotten in making diagnosis.

To help David get past the £1,000 mark donate at justgiving.com/offwiththosedreads.