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Ms Marie-Eve Chainey was eighteen years old when she was in Spain participating in track and field competitions where she developed a blood disorder that made her kidneys stop working. Kidney failure can strike anyone at any age. It is estimated that 1.9 million Canadians have chronic kidney disease.

“I was always very healthy and in good shape so I didn’t pay much attention to the fact I was gaining quite a bit of weight. I never thought that it was because my kidneys were not working properly— I just thought it was because I was in a different country, eating later than usual and eating different kinds of food, ” explains Ms Chainey.

Today, Ms Chainey is working towards a university degree in nursing sciences and working part-time as a trainer helping others to stay fit and healthy. She is also a volunteer with The Kidney Foundation of Canada’s peer support program and Healthpartners Speakers’ Bureau, educating and informing Canadians about kidney disease and life on dialysis. She is able to do all of this because she is participating in a unique home nocturnal hemodialysis program.

“Nocturnal hemodialysis has given me my life back. Without donations to support this program I wouldn’t be able to live a normal life. I sleep with it on for eight to nine hours a night, six nights a week and I don’t have as many side effects as conventional hemodialysis. I am very grateful I have had the opportunity to be part of this unique program and hope that more donations will go towards supporting this program so others suffering from kidney failure will be able to live as normal a life as possible,” says Ms Chainey.