A WINSFORD woman is climbing Kilimanjaro to raise money to help fight a disease that attacks the immune system.

Jess Hardiman, from Nixon Drive, will climb the 5,895m mountain in aid of Lupus UK, as her mother Sereina suffers from the condition.

The 22-year-old has raised £600 of her £4,000 target, and is hoping that her fundraising efforts can help find a cure for the disease.

In preparation for the event, Jess will be climbing mountains as much as possible, with her first target Mount Snowdon in North Wales.

Jess said: “My mum was diagnosed when she was in her 20s and I’ve grown up watching her fight it.

“It just sends her body into overdrive and I really want to do something that might help.

“I’ve always been interested in doing it and just thought why not do it for charity, the climb will be tough but it will be fun and so will the fundraising. I am excited but quite nervous.

“I’ve got my target and hopefully this can raise awareness and fund future research.

“I’d like to do my bit in finding a cure.”

Jess is keen to explore more of the world, having recently returned from a stint travelling across Australia, New Zealand and America.

The trek, which Jess will start on September 27, will take seven days to complete, in temperatures of 25-30 degrees Celsius.

She will tackle the mountain as part of a group, but is training and fundraising alone whilst working at Tesco.

Lupus is an incurable immune system illness that mainly affects women and can affect any part of the body.

The disease can produce many symptoms which family doctors often fail to recognise, these can include depression, extreme fatigue and poor blood condition.

It can often result in weakness, fatigue and organ failure.

Lupus UK is the national charity helping people with the illness and they support 6,000 members. You can donate to Jess’s climb on her funding page at justgiving.com/jessicakilimanjaro.

Visit lupusuk.org.uk.