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Orla, 34, and these friends were born with the life-threatening condition, which affects 10,600 people in the UK, and were facing desperate bids for survival. Incredibly, when this picture was taken in Dublin in April 2018, six of the eight had already had double lung transplants while the other two were waiting for donors. And the image is a treasured memory for Orla, from Ashbourne in County Meath, Ireland, as tragically three of her seven CF friends have since died after complications caused by the cruel genetic condition.

The Daily Express launched a campaign for life-saving CF drugs to be available on the NHS nine months after Orla’s wedding – this and our crusade has helped secure the wonder drug Kaftrio for sufferers.

Orla said: “It is a really special photo as it shows how strong all my friends and I were in the face of adversity.

“We had all been born with this condition and some of us had faced a death sentence waiting for new lungs to be found for us.

“Not everyone with cystic fibrosis manages to get a lung transplant in time to survive.”

CF affects the pancreas, liver and bowels but it also clogs the lungs with mucus, leaving sufferers struggling to breathe.

Apart from antibiotics, until US pharmaceutical giant Vertex had their first mainstream CF drug Orkambi approved for use in Europe in 2015, the only real treatment for gravely-ill sufferers was a transplant. 

With Orla on the day she married Barry, was Dean Archibald, Brian Carlon, Jamie Reid, Bernadette Timmons, Joy O’Brien, Aoife O’Riley and Lar Brennan.

Orla was diagnosed with CF shortly after she was born, being tested as her brother Connor had the condition.

The veterinary nurse said: “I managed well until I was 16, but in my 20s I started to go downhill.”

She was put on the transplant list and spent three years waiting for donor lungs to be found. Eventually, she had her transplant in April 2012. Without her operation, she had just a year to live.

The Express has also been campaigning for more people to join the 27 million on the NHS Organ Donor Register and help 6,000-plus patients needing a transplant.

A welcome law change last year made all adults in England potential organ donors when they die, unless they specifically op out. The law changed has successfully increased the pool of donors.

But 33 percent of next-of-kin families are still blocking donations at hospitals.

We are also pushing for help for CF sufferer Sarah Meredith, 29, of Totnes, Devon, who needs a new liver but has waited for almost a year with her health failing.

Orla added: “It was such a relief when I finally got the call to say new lungs had been found for me. I could celebrate my wedding day with these friends because of the selfless gift by donor families.”

Unfortunately, Bernadette died waiting for her transplant while Dean and Aoife passed away due to complications after transplants.

• To sign the NHS Organ Donor Register and declare your intention to help save lives, visit www.organdonation.nhs.uk

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