The Midlands is being used as a testbed for a new advertising campaign by the health charity the British Heart Foundation.

Its latest posters, depicting shattered perfume bottles to highlight the devastation caused by heart disease in women, will hit the streets of the region this week, and call on people to support Help a Heart Week (June 4 to 12).

In a first for the BHF, a donation-led poster campaign is being trialed in the Midlands region to test the impact and response to the Help a Heart Week campaign.

The posters, carrying the "Fatal for Her" strapline, will drive home the message that each week coronary heart disease kills over four times more women than breast cancer.

The charity believes that women of all ages remain largely unaware of the risks heart disease poses to their health, leaving too many shattered hearts and families in crisis.

Jackie Skeel, head of fundraising promotions for the BHF, explained that the Midlands accounts for some 7.2 million adults who are fairly representative of the UK population as a whole.

She said: "This is important to us as the area is large enough that any learning will be statistically valid, but small enough to keep costs manageable.

"The results of the campaign together with any lessons learned from the test can be scaled for a bigger campaign in the future."

Claire Simmons, Birmingham-based regional director for the BHF said: "These eye-catching posters will help us drive home the message that heart disease is one of the most serious health issues for women in the UK today.

"The sad reality is that over 2,400 women will die from heart and circulatory disease during Help a Heart Week.

"We are desperate to stop so many women and their families from being affected and hope that people will be moved by the campaign to raise much-needed funds for hearts in crisis."

The posters form part of a fully integrated, crossorganisational approach for the Help a Heart Week campaign which includes: corporate partnerships, BHF shops, website activity, through the line advertising, community fundraising and a nationwide direct mailing campaign.

Celebrity support for the campaign includes Gabby Logan, Nell McAndrew, Sarah Cawood and Blues defender Mario Melchiot.

BHF's first new direct response TV advertisement for two years will run on terrestrial and digital stations.

The advert demonstrates the devastating impact the disease can have on families. This will be supported by national press advertising and magazine inserts for various lifestyle titles to hit target audiences.

Janine Pemberton, senior account director at Cheltenham-based creative agency Target Direct, said: "Our thinking was to produce an emotional connection to the issue and dramatise its devastating consequences.

"Heart disease shatters the lives of ordinary families every day.

"The next person to die of heart and circulatory disease could be your sister, your best friend or your mum - and that's what BHF research is helping to fight and why every donation matters."

Help a Heart Week aims to exceed last year's campaign total of £900,000. To support the marketing activity, the Charity has produced a fundraising pack filled with advice and tips.

The pack can be obtained by calling 0800 028 2091 , visiting bhf.org.uk/helpaheart or going into your local BHF shop. To donate call 0800 028 2091.