Patients' stories
Everything the team does is motivated by their patients with kidney disease. They meet regularly with patients, both in person and virtually, to find out what is important to them and identify what is needed to address their studies.
The team ensures as many patients as possible have the opportunity to get involved with research and help ultimately find a cure for their disease - providing them with regular feedback on how research is progressing.
Here are just a few of their stories.
I was diagnosed when I was 22. It wasn’t affecting my life until four years later when I went to the GP with what I thought were mild flu symptoms and it turned out I was at end-stage kidney failure, end stage renal function, and I was rushed straight into hospital where I was put onto dialysis.
People misunderstand how serious kidney failure and dialysis can be. That's why research in this area is so important. I’m grateful to the Leicester Kidney Lifestyle team for everything they have done.
I got a random kidney infection and ever since then my kidneys have deteriorated. In four years, my EGFR, which is a measure of kidney function, went from 40 to 3.
My diagnosis came as a surprise after a long time trying to figure out what was going on after symptoms of tiredness and feeling under the weather. Today I’m at chronic kidney disease stage 4, but my condition is fairly stable. The team at Leicester General and University Hospitals are absolutely brilliant.
I was shocked to receive my diagnosis. It’s not only badly affected me but also my family, my kids and job prospects. It’s scary knowing there is currently no known cure. Thanks to the amazing team at Leicester, I have a glimmer of hope for the future and treatment to live the best quality of life I can. More people need to know about this disease.