mjefferies@thekmgroup.co.uk

Brave Jessica Wales needs to wear a ventilator to help her
breathe at night and is waiting for a double lung transplant.

But the remarkable 20-year-old beat all the odds when she took part
in a 5km race on Sunday .

Jessica, who suffers from cystic fibrosis, a disease that affects
the internal organs – especially the lungs and digestive system –
by clogging them with mucus, tackled the adidas Hydro Active
Challenge through Hyde Park, London.

The race has raised more than £1,200 towards a new unit at King’s
College Hospital, London, where Jessica is a patient. A team of
specialists from the hospital were on hand to support her
throughout her challenge, in which she ran 200 metres every
kilometre and covered the rest of the distance in her
wheelchair.

Jessica, who lives with her family in Westgate-on-Sea, said: “It’s
vital that cystic fibrosis sufferers receive the appropriate
healthcare to ensure a better quality and length of life.

“King’s College Hospital provides a home from home for those
frequent and often lengthy stays, and I’d like to help the centre
help other people just like me.”

Asked whether she would like to complete another race in the
future, an exhausted Jessica added: “My physio is trying to talk me
into it.” Jessica has been waiting for a suitable lung transplant
since 2005 and has proved herself as a real fighter by outliving a
terrifying initial prognosis of just two years.

As an advocate for the transplant charity Live Life Then Give Life,
she has tirelessly appealed for people to join the NHS Organ Donor
Register. An appearance on Noel’s HQ on Sky 1 motivated more than
2,000 people to join the list in a single evening. Jessica plans to
make a separate donation to Live Life Then Give Life after
completing Sunday’s race.

Visitwww.justgiving.com/jessicawales1989to sponsor Jessica. To join the organ donor register,
visitwww.uktransplant.org.uk or phone 0300 123
2323.

Sorry, this video asset has been removed.

Video: 20-year-old Jessica Wales
from Westgate-on-Sea talks to Thanet Extra reporter Martin
Jefferies

Jessica has been waiting for a suitable lung transplant since
2005 and has proved herself as a real fighter by outliving a
terrifying initial prognosis of just two years.

As an advocate for the transplant charity Live Life Then Give
Life (LLTGL), she has tirelessly appealed for people to join the
NHS Organ Donor Register.

An appearance on Noel's HQ on Sky 1 motivated more than 2,000
people to join the list in a single evening.

Jessica plans to make a separate donation to LLTGL after
completing Sunday's race.

To sponsor Jessica, visitwww.justgiving.com/jessicawales1989.
To join the NHS Organ Donor Register, visitwww.uktransplant.org.ukor telephone 0300 123 23 23.