Liver transplant patient to take on walking challenge

Less than a year ago, Paul Mullen's family had been called to his intensive care bed to say their final goodbyes.

He was suffering from a rare autoimmune condition that was causing his liver and kidneys to fail.

However, his life was saved by a transplant.

The 45-year-old is now in training to take on the Yorkshire Three Peaks Challenge in July to fundraise for the British Liver Trust.

"I was adamant I was going to do something because I felt I owed it to myself to make life count and to the person who allowed me to have this second chance," he says.

Mullen first suspected something was wrong in 2023 when his shins started itching so badly that he would scratch them until they bled.

He also developed crushing fatigue, followed by jaundice and was diagnosed in 2024 with advanced primary biliary cholangitis.

The British Liver Trust describes it as a rare autoimmune condition which causes inflammation of the bile ducts, with symptoms including itching and fatigue.

As the disease progressed, litres of fluid began building up on Mullen's abdomen, and he needed to be regularly drained in hospital.

He had a demanding job in hospitality, working 70 hours a week, but his health deteriorated so much he could no longer continue to work.

Mullen, from Sheffield, was placed on the liver transplant waiting list in May 2025, but by August his health had deteriorated so badly that he was rushed to intensive care.

"A donor liver had become available but I wasn't well enough to accept it – I really struggled with that mentally because it finally sank in how ill I actually was," he says.

Fortunately, his condition improved and when a second liver became available in August, the transplant was able to go ahead.

Mullen says: "I've just recently written my letter to my donor's family, which was quite a tough thing to do because how do you take any kind of joy out someone else's grief?

"It's something that's been quite important for me to do.

"I went through so many emotions again, the anxiety, happiness, sadness, fear, the fact that someone died to enable me to live.

"I've got nothing but love and thanks to the guys in hospital."

It was while he lay recovering in hospital that he had the idea of doing a challenge to support the British Liver Trust to help fund their research and services.

"I also wanted to raise awareness of the stigma surrounding liver disease because so many people think it's only caused by alcohol," he says.

Now he is walking 10km (6.2 miles) a day to train for the Yorkshire Three Peaks Challenge in July.

"My consultant did tell me off quite a lot in the first couple of months because they were worried I was overdoing it, but I found it tough to hold back," he says.

The route involves a 24-km (15 mile) trek across the Yorkshire Dales and climbing the three highest peaks in Yorkshire, Pen-y-Ghent, Whernside, and Ingleborough.

Mullen will be accompanied by his son Alexander and his brother-in-law, Wade Savage.

"It's crazy to think of the state I was in a year ago when I couldn't even walk 15 yards to the toilet from my hospital bed," Mullen says.

"My consultant is really happy with my progress and is now very supportive of me doing the challenge."

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