'The chances are slim, but I'm staying positive'

FOR as long as she could remember, Christine Micklejohn had never felt entirely well. All through her childhood, she was plagued with tiredness and nausea but repeated visits to her GP found nothing. As her health declined, she became increasingly frustrated and then, at the age of 19, she suffered total renal failure.

While most people would have been devastated by the diagnosis, Christine was extremely philosophical. "It seems really strange but I had been so poorly for such a long time that it was a relief. I had had symptoms for years and been back and forwards to the doctors but no-one picked it up," she says.

It was actually an optician who suggested she could be suffering from kidney failure. She visited him when she began to experience problems with her eyesight which, it turns out, were caused by high blood pressure bursting the blood vessels in her eyes - a common symptom of kidney failure.

Her condition was probably caused by an undetected urine infection as a child, which caused her kidneys to burst. When doctors examined her, they found the organs were the size of a toddler's. If the problem had been detected earlier, the rate of failure may have been slowed down but it could not have been halted.

The kidneys perform a crucial role in filtering the blood, removing toxins from the body in the form of urine. When they start to fail, toxins are accumulated in the tissues, leading to a range of problems, which include tiredness, weakness, loss of appetite and vomiting. Excess salt and water retention can cause high blood pressure, swelling in the legs and abdomen and breathlessness.

Christine, from Blackhill, near Consett, was treated at the Freeman Hospital in Newcastle, then newly-built, where she became the first patient to pioneer a revolutionary treatment. Following her diagnosis, she imagined herself hooked up to a cumbersome dialysis machine for the rest of her life, but the new system, continuous ambulatory peritoneal dialysis (CAPD), allowed her to lead a relatively normal life.

The process involved fixing a tube in her stomach which enabled her to flush out her abdomen with a special solution every four hours. Because of the open wound, the risk of infection was high, but Christine remained on CAPD for four years.

"It was a big shock to the system to have to cope with dialysis, especially as it was all so new, but I did try to live as normal a life as possible," she says.

At the time, Christine was studying to be a teacher at Newcastle Polytechnic. She had hoped her illness would just interrupt her studies for a year but she found she was taking too much time off and gave up her course. She took what she thought would be a temporary job in the Jobcentre at Consett, but 24 years later, she's a disabilities employment adviser, drawing on her own experiences to help others find jobs.

Nearly five years after being diagnosed with kidney failure, Christine had a transplant. It offered the chance of a new life, free from dialysis, but failed after only 15 days, leaving her life hanging in the balance.

Christine, who drifted in and out of consciousness, remembers little of what happened but her mother, Beth Carr, recalls every detail.

"She ended up desperately ill and on a ventilator for a fortnight. There was a point when we really thought we were going to lose her. We thought, 'why us?' but then we thought, 'why not?'. Fortunately, we had the strength to get through."

With her hair falling out, incontinent and forced to use a walking frame, Christine found herself waiting for another transplant. In less than a year, another suitable donor was found and this time, it was a success.

The quality of her life improved dramatically, although it was still punctuated by frequent hospital visits. She also had to resign herself to the fact that she can never have children.

"I don't think people realise how restricting it is, no matter what your age. There are all the side-effects like anaemia and tiredness, and all the medication you have to take. Having said that, I'm really grateful for it. I've received excellent care over the last 25 years but it does change your life."

Christine received another blow two years ago when she began to experience pain in her chest and was diagnosed with angina. Kidney failure and heart conditions are closely linked, and there was a history of congenital heart failure in Christine's family, but it was still an enormous shock, especially when she discovered she would have to have a triple heart bypass

"I was only 42, I couldn't believe it," she says, but as with everything, she took it in her stride, and the operation was a success.

When I ask her how she copes, she doesn't seem to know. "I suppose I was just really lucky to be born with tenacity. My parents were really supportive and my husband is wonderful. When I was younger I used to find it quite stressful but I have had so much thrown at me that now I just accept it. My colleagues are amazed that I even get into work but having the normality of going into the office helps me get through."

Christine has been married to David, a teacher at Blackfyne Comprehensive, Blackhill, for 11 years. When they first met, he knew nothing about Christine's condition. The first test came when the couple spent a weekend with David's mum in North Yorkshire and Christine became ill. He drove her up to the Freeman and left her there.

"I thought to myself, 'that's it' and I even said to my brother that I didn't think he'd come back. But he did. He said he'd really thought about it and he wanted to be with me. He's been there ever since."

Unfortunately, Christine's kidney failed last year, although she's been incredibly lucky that it has lasted for 20 years. Most kidneys fail after a much shorter period, sometimes just five or ten years.

She is now undergoing dialysis at the Freeman Hospital three times a week. "It's much easier the second time round because I know what to expect," she says. She is back on the transplant register, but knows that she may have a long wait for a suitable donor.

"Having had two kidneys already, the chances of finding another match are really slim because of the antibodies that are already in my body. Even though the first kidney was just in for a few days, the tissue from it is still there. That makes things more difficult but I'm keeping positive. It's the only way."

* There will be a concert to raise money for the Northern Counties Kidney Research Fund on July 10 at the Consett Empire Theatre, starting at 7.30pm. Tickets cost £5 (£4 concessions) and are available from the theatre on (01207) 218171.