A Bradford consultant will scale new heights for her patients when she attempts to climb Mount Kilimanjaro later this year to raise money for a charity close to her heart.

Dr Kate London is a consultant dermatologist at Bradford Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust and when she found out that the British Skin Foundation was holding a sponsored ascent of the highest mountain in Africa, she decided it was too good an opportunity to miss.

Dr London said: “In a moment of madness to celebrate my recent fiftieth birthday - because I have never done long walks or climbs before - I decided to take up a new challenge which I hope will help all the people I see on a daily basis in my dermatology clinics with skin conditions.

“Skin conditions affect eight million people in the UK across all age groups, from the baby with eczema, to the teenager who hides away from the world because of their acne, from the young adult diagnosed with a skin cancer like melanoma to the businessman scared to shake hands because of his psoriasis or the adult fearful to go swimming because the appearance of their skin may be upsetting others; to the elderly person unable to sleep because of itching.  

“The BSF is a small but amazing charity which raises money for research into all skin diseases as well as providing education and awareness of skin conditions like psoriasis, eczema, skin cancer, alopecia and vitiligo, so any apprehension I have is over-ridden by a desire to give something back to the patients I serve.”

Dr London is currently in training for the six-day ascent with fellow consultant Dr Gayle Taylor, a consultant dermatologist based in Dewsbury, who will accompany her on the fundraising challenge.

The pair will walk for seven days, for as long as 17 hours on the toughest day, and climb to an altitude of 5895 metres above sea level.

Dr London, who is aiming for a fundraising target of £3,500, is no stranger to raising money for charity having previously raised more than £6,000 running the London and New York marathons.

She added: “In the past I’ve always enjoyed marathon challenges. The first marathon I ran was in London in aid of the British Heart Foundation in memory of my father who died age 54 whilst out running.

“The second one was the New York marathon and was for Wakefield Hospice in memory of a very good friend, Kath Hosker, who died of breast cancer aged just 38.”

Over the last 15 years the BSF has supported 260 research projects into 50 different skin conditions at a cost of £7.5 million.

Sponsor Dr London at http://www.justgiving.com/user/31954401