Craft fair raises awareness of little-known liver condition (From Basingstoke Gazette)
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Craft fair raises awareness of little-known liver condition
5:31pm Tuesday 18th September 2012 in Local
Jo Elliott, far left, and Jane Thomas, far right, Hampshire volunteers of the PBC Foundation, at the craft fair
A GROUP of women held a craft fair in Basingstoke to raise awareness about a little-known disease.
The PBC Foundation aims to support people with Primary Biliary Cirrhosis, a liver disease that is not related to alcohol or drug abuse.
There is no known cure for the disease, it affects mainly women over the age of 40 and is the primary reason for liver transplants in the UK.
The charity held its first craft fair in Basingstoke at the Sycamore Centre, in Sycamore Way, Winklebury, and attractions included face-painting, cupcakes and bric-a-brac stalls.
Organiser Jane Thomas, of Kenil-worth Road, Winklebury, was diagnosed in 1996 after the condition was discovered during a routine blood test. She had a liver transplant in 2004, although this does not get rid of the illness.
The 54-year-old said: “My skin gets very itchy with it and I get bouts of tiredness.
“Not a lot of people know about this condition. A lot of people assume that because we have a liver disease that we have a drinking problem.”
