Walk in September raises awareness and funds

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Next month the Polycystic Kidney Disease Foundation is holding its seventh annual walk for polycystic kidney disease (PKD), an illness which affects 1 in 5 people worldwide according to Jeffrey Robertson, Director of the group's Toronto Chapter.

"(The disease) affects more people worldwide, than Down syndrome, cystic fibrosis, muscular dystrophy, and sickle cell anemia combined," he said, adding that PKD is one of the most common life-threatening genetic diseases and affects approximately 66,000 people in Canada.

Mary Ann Turjanica, of Etobicoke, found out she was one of those people after her mother died from complications of the disease in 1977. She said she started noticing symptoms about 12 years ago.

"The kidney function started to slow down," she said. "You get a little more tired."

Parents with the most common form of the disease, Autosomal Dominant PKD, have a 50 per cent chance of passing the disease on to each child, while people with Autosomal Recessive PKD (ADPKD), a rarer form of the ailment affecting around 1 in 20,000 people, have a 25 per cent chance of passing the gene on but show no evidence of the disease themselves.

Turjanica knows this is the truth; one of her daughters has inherited the gene, although she hasn't experienced symptoms yet.

Polycystic means multiple cysts. Robertson explained that those who inherit PKD can develop fluid-filled cysts in their kidneys which grow over time, sometimes causing the kidney to grow up to the size of a football.

Turjanica was one of the lucky ones. She received a kidney transplant ten years ago. Her husband, George, was the donor. She said she's been cured, although she still takes anti-rejection drugs to be sure her body doesn't reject the new kidney. Turjanica has been affiliated with the PKD Foundation since its inception, and has participated in all the walks to date.

For those who would like to participate in this event, check in starts at 9:30 a.m. and the walk starts at 11 a.m. at the Centennial Park Ski Hill, Sept. 21. The 15-year-old group hopes to break their records for participation and money raised, after last year's 150 participants raised $26,000. To register or donate online visit www.pkdcure.org/PKDFCanada.