A HUSBAND and wife are preparing for a marathon challenge – six months after she gave him one of her kidneys.

Gill Redmond went under the knife after partner Mark was diagnosed with kidney failure.

The former RAF pilot discovered he had a condition called Berger’s Syndrome while flying Nimrods from the Kinloss base in Moray in 1995 and suffered a serious drop in kidney function seven years later.

When his condition further deter-iorated, doctors said a transplant might be his only chance of survival and Gill, 47, volunteered her own kidney. Now the couple are preparing to cycle the 66-mile Etape Loch Ness in April to raise awareness of organ donation.

Gill, from Covesea near Lossiemouth, said: “I’m more petrified about this than I ever was about the operation but we are both determined to complete it to show that there is life after a transplant.

“What this whole experience has taught us is that you only have one life. You have to crack on and pack as much into it as possible, and not waste any opportunity that comes along. A year ago, it would have been inconceivable for Mark to have considered doing this. He had been such a fit guy and all of a sudden he was lying on the sofa sleeping for hours a day. It was such as shock to see him like that.

“This was a no-brainer for me. We encountered a problem and we needed a solution: I had the solution that could fix the problem.”

The couple, who have two teenage daughters, have managed to convince more than 40 friends and family to sign up to the organ donation register and hope their cycle challenge will inspire more people to do the same. Mark said: “I’m not interested in the time we do, just that we finish it and we finish it together. This time last year I couldn’t even drive 60 miles, so it’s incredibly emotional for me to think that in a few months I will be cycling more than 60 miles in one of the most beautiful places on Earth.

“Transplants not only save lives, they change lives. If one person consents to organ donation when they pass away, they can benefit seven other people. That’s seven lives that can be completely transformed.

“I hope that Gill and I can encourage people to talk about it with their families, and to take that step to register. You can do it in the time that it takes to boil the kettle to have a brew. It’s not just middle-aged men like me they could be helping, it could be a baby, a child, a young parent.”

Describing his own transplant in August, Mark went on: “I did not want to have a kidney from her Gill because I did not want to put her through any unnecessary suffering or put her at risk. It took me quite a while to get my head around the fact that Gill wanted to do this.

“My doctors at Aberdeen Royal Infirmary convinced me there were no risks to Gill other than those normally associated with any kind of surgery. As long as there are no underlying health issues which would result in extra strain being put on the body, one kidney is perfectly adequate.”