SIGN up to the donor register, is the message from a woman recently diagnosed with a life-threatening liver disease.

When doctors told Hazel Davies that she was suffering from an incurable condition so rare she had never heard of it, the Thornaby woman pledged to do all she could to raise awareness in a bid to help other people.

Ms Davies said her world was turned upside down when she was diagnosed with primary biliary cholangitis (PBC).

The condition, which is not associated with alcohol use, is a chronic liver disease that causes bile ducts in the liver to become damaged.

If sufferers do not respond well to medication, an organ transplant may eventually be needed as a life-saving measure.

Ahead of the International PBC Awareness Day – Sunday, September 10 – Ms Davies shared her story in a bid to raise awareness of the condition and to encourage people to sign up to the organ donor register.

She said her diagnosis came after she went to the doctor complaining of a constant itching across her body, a tell-tale symptom of the condition.

Ms Davies, an education welfare officer, added: “I thought I had an allergy and went to the doctor after a couple of weeks with my skin raw.

“A blood test determined what was wrong and when I was told I had an incurable liver disease, I couldn’t believe I was hearing properly.

“I was totally shell-shocked and worried about what would happen, I thought I was going to die.

“It took a while to sink in but then everything started making sense - when I read about the symptoms, which include the itchiness, sickness and chronic fatigue, I realised this was what had been wrong with me for a long time.

“The fatigue is the worst, some days I can’t even speak because I feel so tired but it all comes and goes and I do what I can, knowing that there is no cure.

“They can slow down the progress with medication but they can’t cure it and they don’t know yet what causes it, though it may be genetic.

“My aunty has it and she has had two liver transplants – if it gets to that stage and there’s no organs out there, sufferers could die.

“I’ve been on the donor register since I was 18 and it seems strange that I may now need one myself, but I would urge everyone to sign up to it.”

To mark PBC Awareness Day, there will be a walk around Preston Park this Sunday from noon, followed by a picnic.

Ms Davies said: “It’s a way of boosting awareness as not many people know about this condition.

“It also gives those who have it a way of talking to each other – this can be devastating and it is good to have the opportunity to speak to people who understand.”