The 13th March is World Kidney Day and I am hosting an Afternoon Tea in Aid of Polycystic Kidney Disease Charity (PKD). A number of friends that are unable to attend have expressed an interest in donating, I have therefore set up this page to allow you to do so.

The PKD Charity is close to my heart as a number of family members have suffered with the disease.

 My mother suffered with the disease for over half of her life and it cruelly took her from us on 28th August 2012 - shortly before I discovered that I was pregnant with our first Child.

 My mother was always full of life and despite suffering from the awful effects that the disease had on her body, she never once complained or made a fuss.  To the outside world (and even to those close to her) you would never have known just how ill she was.  Shortly before she was due to start dialysis, she was very fortunate to receive a kidney donor which extended her quality of life for around 15 years. 

 Unfortunately PKD and its drugs used to treat the disease can cause many side effects. My mother’s immune system was weakened and therefore unable to fight an infection that the cysts on her kidneys had caused. She was admitted to hospital (shortly after my husband and I returned from our honeymoon) where they tried to help her fight the infection.  All attempts failed so she requested to have her old kidneys removed (as standard, these are not removed when a new kidney is transplanted).  Although the operation was a success, she ended up with septicaemia.  She fought off the infection but her body was under attack with one infection after another.  After 6 awful weeks in hospital, with her body too tired to carry on, her life support machine was switched off with her family by her side....the worst moment of my life...

 My mother also lost her own mother to the disease but at a much younger age.  My mother was only 15 when she returned home one day to find her mother on the floor in a coma to which she never awoke.

 My uncle continues to suffer with the disease today.  He also received a kidney donor which gave a second lease of life but unfortunately that kidney has now failed and he requires regular dialysis.

 About 70,000 adults and children in the UK have Polycystic Kidney Disease or PKD - life-threatening inherited conditions that can cause renal (kidney) failure and affect other organs in the body. Over 12 million children and adults worldwide have PKD.  More info: http://pkdcharity.org.uk/about-adpkd/just-diagnosed/fast-facts-about-adpkd

The photo below shows an ADPKD kidney compared with a normal kidney. (Photo courtesy of the PKD Foundation). 

ADPKD is at present incurable. There is no treatment that will stop the cysts developing and growing. The primary focus is on managing the symptom.

However, a number of drugs are currently being trialled around the world aimed at slowing the decline of kidney function, giving future hope of an improved quality of life for those affected and their children. I hope that the money we raise can go towards finding such treatments and hopefully a future cure.

Thank you so much for taking the time to read this page. I truly appreciate your support

Melanie

xxx