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Transplant woman joins ocean race

Double-lung transplant patient Justine Laymond. Credit: PA

A double-lung transplant patient has taken on more than 2,000 miles of ocean in one of the toughest legs of a round-the-world yacht race.

Justine Laymond, 39, endured exhaustion, tropical storms and rough seas in the Atlantic during her four weeks competing in the Clipper Round the World Yacht Race.

She decided to join a relay team of transplant patients, surgeons and specialist nurses in the race to raise awareness of the difference an organ transplant can make to a seriously ill person.

Her life was transformed by a double-lung transplant she underwent in 2006 after suffering 15 lung collapses and being in a coma for three weeks.

Her achievement at sea was something she said she could never dream of back then, but that her experience has taught her to "live life for today".