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When my wife Asha was diagnosed with kidney renal disease, it was to be the start of a long, painful and stressful journey.  Asha had endured many suffering years of kidney deterioration and eventually commenced dialysis treatment in 2006.  Luckily after 8 weeks, and to our absolute delight, a suitable kidney donor was found and a successful transplant was made.

Asha is now able to live life fully and we have never been happier!  In 2008 we had our first daughter, followed by another daughter in December 2009!  We never thought the day would arrive when Asha would be well enough to have children – we are eternally grateful to Asha’s donor and the Royal Free Hospital.  Support throughout Asha’s illness from the staff at the Royal Free Hospital was amazing and to this day they continue to provide support and guidance in order to maintain Asha’s good health.

As a small token of our appreciation for all of the hard work that has been put into Asha’s full recovery, we are raising funds for the Royal Free Hospital Kidney Patients Association, who provide support for kidney patients and their families, counselling, grants for financial hardship cases and provide equipment not funded by the NHS.

Our team comprises Asha’s relatives and for anyone who knows us will agree that we are not the most naturally gifted runners and that this is definitely not a walk in the park for us!  However, it still remains our pleasure to be taking part in the ‘Run Richmond Park 5k/10k Series’ on 26th June 2010. 

Please show your support by donating – every penny counts!

Ben Korsa-Acquah

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Our kidneys are vital and sophisticated organs.

They filter and clean 200 litres of blood per day. They remove wasters and excess water from our blood in the form of urine.

They help balance the levels of chemical substances in our bodies such as sodium, phosphorus and potassium. They also produce important hormones that stimulate bone marrow to make red blood cells; regulate our blood pressure; help keep our bones strong.

High blood pressure and diabetes are the main causes of Chronic Kidney Disease (CKD).

500 million individuals worldwide are affected. If CKD worsens it can lead to kidney failure. In order to survive, people with severe kidney failure must either receive a transplanted kidney or be kept alive with dialysis, usually by a machine which cleans their blood about three times a week, each session lasting 4-5 hours.

A greater risk than kidney failure is that people with CKD may develop Cardiovascular diseases. People with CKD are 10 times more likely than healthy people, to die of heart attacks and strokes.

One out of 10 adults in the world has some form of kidney damage