Alex's Respite Fund #smileforalex


About Alexandra

Alexandra Keel is 30 and she lives in Cheltenham, UK with her husband.  In 2011, Alex (who had no significant health problems up until this point) became uncontrollably itchy and after various tests was diagnosed with Primary Sclerosing Cholangitis (PSC) which was causing her liver to fail.  She was placed on an urgent liver transplant waiting list.  Alex received a new liver in January 2012 and began to recover. However over the next 18 months she began to experience problems again and it soon became evident that the PSC was back and again damaging her liver function.  In 2015 she again went through the surgery to have another new liver.  Sadly, during 2016, the PSC has returned and causing the new liver to fail.

What is PSC?

PSC is an uncommon chronic liver disease in which the bile ducts inside and outside of the liver progressively decrease in size due to inflammation and scarring (fibrosis). The disease may occur alone, but frequently is associated with inflammatory diseases of the colon, especially chronic ulcerative colitis.

You can read more about it here:

British Liver Trust - PSC


Potential Treatment 

Alex's health is deteriorating and she has been referred for what will be her 3rd transplant.  Her consultant has enlisted other specialists to help Alex on a permanent road to recovery after this operation.  Their investigations and research have shown that further operations may combat the cause of the problem.  Therefore if her health allows, Alex will also undergo an elective colectomy possibly followed by a stem cell transplant (TBC) in the period after her transplant.

Why are we asking for your help?

We are Alex's friends and colleagues and we are in awe of the way Alex has dealt with her situation.  Her positivity and her determination not to pity herself is nothing short of amazing.  She does get scared and sad at times, but she does not let her condition or her feelings get in the way of leading as normal life a life as possible.

Alex came to work for our company in September 2012.  During her interview she spoke of her operation and how lucky she was to be on the road to recovery.  Her happy demeanour and strength of character were two major reasons why she got her job with us.

We offer Alex as much support as we can during longer periods when she is sick or recovering from an operation but when she is away from the office for a long period, there is a financial implication.  Therefore we are trying to find another way to help to take the pressure of both herself, and her wonderful husband who is her primary carer.  They are a a very lovely, normal couple with a mortgage and the usual living expenses.  We want to be able to give them help so that when Alex has these next three operations, they do not have the burden of fincancial worries on top of everything else but can concentrate on her recovery 100% with the care and support they might need in their home.

If Alexandra receives the planned treatment and it works (which looks likely from the research), this could open up this pathway to other sufferers and change more lives than just hers and her husband's.  



Despite everything she has been through she always keeps a smile on her face. We hope to find as many people to donate as possible so that Alex, who is such a wonderful person, can keep smiling and get back to the life that so many of us take for granted.  Trust us, she deserves it.

Thank you so much.

Caroline, Vanessa and Hayley x

Alex's Facebook Page

Please like our page for updates.

Alex's Facebook Page

If you are unable to donate, please help us to share Alex's story to help raise awareness of her situation and also of this rare condition.  Thank you.

Any excess from the fund will be split equally between Alex's choice of charities, PSC Support and the Queen Elizabeth Hospital Birmingham Liver Trust.

See Alex's interview on the BBC here