Dianne Wakefield, of Staniforth Crescent, remains positive that a life-saving donor will be forthcoming, but says the wait is 'absolute torture'.

The 52-year-old, who suffers from auto-immune disease polymyositis, has been as far as the waiting room at Freemans Hospital in Newcastle before finding out a donation is unsuitable.

"You can't describe the emotional and mental torment that you go through," said Dianne, who has pleaded for more people to sign up to the organ donor register.

"It's absolute agony. But I now go up there with every intention of coming back. It minimises the stress that you put on yourself."

Husband John, 64, was a credit manager for a steel company before giving up his job to become a full-time carer for Dianne.

"We are really just on death row, just hoping that somewhere along the line we are going to get a reprieve," he said. "And it could be any time, day or night."

"Dianne disappears after they call, and I know that, if she gets the lung, our lives will start a new regime when she arrives home."

"I'm basically a nurse for her, 24 hours a day and seven days a week. I do the housework, cooking and washing. I do everything basically, and Dianne can't go out anywhere without me."

"We're really just surviving day by day. It's a time thing, and Dianne's is now running out very, very quickly. We have to guard against any infection, we are on tenterhooks all the time."

And when he officially retires next week, John will lose his £50-a-week carer's allowance.

"If you're not claiming any benefits then you have to do it all by yourself," he said. "We just feel so isolated sometimes and there are no support groups as such."

"We need to change people's perceptions. If people could see how Dianne is and not just stick their heads in the sand and do nothing about it, we can do that."

Dianne's problems began in 1997, when she was diagnosed as having a rheumatoid lung.

"I had some aggressive treatment back then, which helped," she said. "But it started to come back quite badly in 2002, and the same aggressive treatment didn't work that time. The lung disease just took on a life of its own after that."

"I have what they call an interstitial lung disease, which causes pulmonary fibrosis. It basically means all the little sacks start to die off, and so my lungs just get smaller and smaller and smaller."

"In 2005 I asked for a second opinion at the Royal Brompton Hospital in London, one of the best chest hospitals in the country. They told me that it was actually polymyositis, which is very similar."

She originally applied to be put on the list in January last year, but wasn't given the go ahead for a further four months.

"At first they said I wasn't suitable enough to go on the list," said Dianne, who had to give up her career at a big insurance company.

"I had to undergo a really strict exercise programme because at that time my upper body wasn't strong enough. We went back in May and they put me on the list."

Since then, 10 trips to Tyneside have seen eight end in unsuitable lungs, while the other two turned out to be double lung transplants, and so were given to someone needing two.

"I've been as far as wearing the operating gown in the waiting room," said Dianne. "About three months ago I had three illnesses virtually at the same time, and since then I've deteriorated quite a lot."

"So now I'm a top priority, which is ironic, because I've not had anymore calls since then. My time is running out. In July they were saying I would have about six months before I become too ill for the operation."

"I would plead with people to just contact UK Transplant and register as a donor. The donors are treated with as much respect as the transplantees."

"A lot of people say they want to be a donor, but then just don't sign up. It's so much easier if they have. Because, God forbid, if anything were to happen, checking the register makes it so much easier to approach the families. I definitely agree with the opt-out idea."

She added: "It will be so worth it when it happens. We are both still positive: it is going to happen."

You can find out more about joining the NHS Organ Donor Register by telephoning 0845 60 60 400 or visiting www.uktransplant.org.uk.