'I thought I was one of the healthy guys, but my kidneys were failing' - Yorkshire kidney patient shares his story as new research gets funding

A Yorkshire kidney patient has recalled the moment he was told his kidneys were failing after hearing that nearly £0.5m worth of funding has been allocated to fund research in the region.
Laura Reid
By Laura Reid
Published 14th Mar 2023, 11:50 BST

Jermaine Jones, a contracts manager from Wakefield woke up one day with what felt like a hangover. Over the next two weeks, he was constantly thirsty and started to notice that he was passing urine at a much faster rate than usual. After getting his blood tested at the doctor, Jermaine was given the news that his kidneys had failed. He says: “I didn’t expect this at all and was in complete shock. I had always been one of the healthy guys, training in the gym and playing sports so I did not expect to have something so serious.”

In November 2022, he received a transplant through the kidney donor share scheme. But with donor kidneys lasting 20 years on average, Jermaine knows he may need another one day.

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Researchers at the University of Leeds are continuing work in the fight against kidney disease and have recently been awarded a total of £475,000 from two charitable organisations, Kidney Research UK and Kidney Research Yorkshire. Jermaine says: “I am really excited whenever I see a new piece of research being funded, as I know that new discoveries could help to improve my life.”

Yorkshire kidney patient Jermaine Jones was told his kidneys were failing.Yorkshire kidney patient Jermaine Jones was told his kidneys were failing.
Yorkshire kidney patient Jermaine Jones was told his kidneys were failing.

The projects will look at how viral infections in transplant patients can be managed and whether a technique known as ‘exon skipping’ can be used in conditions such a polycystic kidney disease, which could open up new avenues for treatments.

Related topics:YorkshireWakefieldUniversity of Leeds