Kate Quinn who received a kidney from her Mum in 2003 is the partner of Justin who took part in the Great Manchester Run in 2013 on behalf of Kidneys for Life. Kate had this to say – “I was on haemodialysis for almost 2 years and struggled with general well -being throughout. After dialysis I slept and then usually the following day because I was wiped out from the gruel of the dialysis itself and so on. Immediately after transplant, when I woke from anaesthetic, I felt euphoric! I was rushing with feel good hormones, I felt brand new. So I went back to college and work, then I met Justin, who is a bricklayer, and we were inseparable and still are! We had lots of holidays and trips out and lived life to the maximum. We had Abbie (aged 4) and Liam (aged 3) and I wanted to be full-time mum. When Liam was 6 month old a biopsy confirmed that my original disease, microscopic poly arthritis had relapsed and was tinkering with my much loved and cared for kidney! It was a real inconvenience since I was enjoying my life so much and enjoying caring for my two young babies. I had a second course of cyclophosphamide and thankfully it was successful, and my kidney was kept from much harm. Although since then, there has been a noticeable decline in function and my general well-being. During this scary time, Justin and I felt so much respect and admiration for the whole team at the MRI, the nurses at clinic and on ward 10, and my consultant which was Dr Colin Short but is now the Dr Mike Picton. We so wanted to raise some money for Kidneys for Life that Justin took part in Great Manchester Run and it was a wonderful experience for all the family we were so proud of him. It was the first of many years racing and fundraising to come and maybe I will running next to him next year but don’t tell anyone I said that” – Kate Quinn