A Bradford man whose previously fit and healthy dad died from sepsis has joined a campaign to put others on their guard against the infection that claims the lives of 37,000 people a year.

In Bradford East alone there are an average of 140 cases of severe sepsis per year and more than 50 deaths, according to one Bradford MP.

Martin Garrity was devastated in June last year when doctors told him his 62-year-old dad Paul Garrity was not going to survive from the illness a GP had originally diagnosed as flu.

Martin, who lives in Grady Close, Idle, said: “We weren’t expecting it. Dad’s GP had said the shivering, the pain, the fever and confusion was likely to be flu and he just needed to rest but my sister wasn’t happy and got him to A&E.

“Unfortunately it was a busy Friday night, they admitted him and put him on a medical ward. It was only on the Monday they realised he had an infection and it was sepsis. By the time the infection on his elbow was traced and drained, it was too late – it had got everywhere and he died soon after.”

Mr Garrity died at Leeds General Infirmary after his family had got him transferred from hospital in Scarborough where he lived and worked as a coachmaker.

Martin added: “Dad was a fit and healthy man. He ran regularly, went on long walks and never had a day off sick. If his symptoms had been picked up earlier, he might have survived. That’s why our family wanted to tell our story – to stop it from happening to others.

“That’s why it’s so important for people to know what to look out for. To keep up with their immunisations and keep up with their own infection control like washing hands.”

Bradford East MP David Ward has joined Mr Garrity in his campaign to get help from the Department for Health for sepsis to be viewed as a medical emergency and have a higher profile among medical professionals and the public. The condition kills more people than breast cancer, bowel cancer and prostate cancer combined Mr Ward said: “Simple, timely interventions could instantly cut deaths from sepsis by more than 50 per cent.”

Sepsis happens when the body’s response to an infection damages its own tissues and organs. It can lead to shock, multiple organ failure and death.

Mr Ward added: “While sepsis is a condition which may not hit the headlines, it is deadly. If timely interventions proposed by the UK Sepsis Trust were adopted across the NHS it could save up to 12,500 lives a year and the NHS money.”

Yesterday was World Sepsis Day.