Words by Adam Smith / Pics supplied by Becky Roberts & family
A Kingstanding mother-of-three is in a desperate race against time as without a kidney transplant she has just two years to live.
Several potential donors have come forward but due to coronavirus the NHS is not testing people, creating “a death sentence” for Becky Roberts.
Without a Caribbean heritage donor Becky will not survive Anti-GBM Disease – a rare disorder where the immune system mistakenly attack vital organs.
Becky told Erdington Local: “I’m scared. I want to stay alive. It has been a nightmare whirlwind; I went into hospital on Christmas Eve in 2018 and was misdiagnosed with food poisoning.
“If I had not have gone back a few days later I would have died the next day because my kidneys were operating at 1%. I spent the next four months in hospital which turned my life upside down.
“I’ve got a one in a million rare disease which doctors say they only see once every ten years.”
She added: “I was told I had five years to live and that was three years ago, so I have two years left. Going private is now my only option because the NHS are not testing live donors due to the pandemic.”
Becky has haemodialysis three-time-a-week, four-hours per day, at the Castle Vale Dialysis Unit, and five of her family have offered to be tested to donate a kidney.
Click here to visit the ‘Help Save Becky’s Life’ GoFundMe campaign page.
The former Great Barr School pupil said: “I’ve been overwhelmed by the generosity of everyone, I’ve had people I’ve not seen since school get in touch and donate money. I’ve even had people offer to donate kidneys.
“People are so kind; I need every penny I can get to stay alive. We need to raise £86,000 so I can see my children grow up.”
Becky’s daughter Aliyah added: “She has endured more than anybody should, experiencing chemotherapy treatment to help with the disease, losing her hair, and enduring countless operations over the past two years.”
For more click here or search ‘Help Save Becky’s Life’ on www.gofundme.com