Hi, my name is Mark. I'm a born and bred Guernseyman (or 'Donkey' as we are more affectionately know as). 

I was diagnosed with chronic emphysema in June 1993. It was a shock to hear from my doc that I possibly only had a year to 18 months left to live. After two years of travelling back and forth to Southampton for scans and tests, I was finally referred to Papworth Hospital in the August of 1995.

It was in 1996 at the age of 34 that I was assessed for a lung transplant for which I was approved and added to the list. I was only on the list for about an hour when, out-of-the-blue, I was offered a revolutionary new lung operation, namely a bullectomy . As far as I'm aware, I was the first patient to receive this operation in Papworth. 

There were a few complications along the way, however I have been lucky to be able to live a near-normal life for the past 25 years. This is all thanks to Papworth Hospital's exceptional staff and an extremely competent surgeon called Mr Francis Wells.

Today, at the ripe old age of 58, I now feel rich in health and full of life.  So I believe that it is now time to give a little back. I plan to take on a number of physical challenges over the next few years or so. My first main challenge being a 150 mile hike over the scenic cliffs of Guernsey during the week of my 60th birthday. The big date being 16th September 2022. Not Long to train!

Two years on and I have managed not only to complete my main challenge of walking the cliffs of Guernsey I have walked 100,000 steps in 14 hours, I have completed half marathons and even found time to write a book. The book is called "Why The Hell Am I Doing This" and every penny made from the sale of the book goes to charity. At present I am training to walk 80 miles with in 24 hours and hope to complete this challenge on June the 10th 2023. If all goes well next year I would like to run the Guernsey Marathon.

If you would like to purchase a copy of my book please visit my website Papaprev.org on how to obtain a copy.