We supported the idea of organ donation once again

There are about 30 people on stage, wearing sportswear and t-shirts with start numbers. There is a crowd of people in front of the stage, some of them taking photos.
The 28th “Run for a New Life” is done and dusted. About 100 four-people relay teams took part in it. The teams consisted of transplant recipients, family donors, youth, athletes, journalists, actors, and medics – including our specialists. Each of them, equipped with Nordic walking poles, covered the symbolic 1 kilometer along the alleys of the Museum of King Jan III’s Palace in Wilanów. All with the aim of expressing support for the idea of organ donation.

WUM representatives in the Run for a New Life

We were represented by specialists directly involved in transplantation medicine, but not only. For some, this was the first time they’d joined the run, but most participate every year in this activity, which is aimed at building positive attitudes towards organ transplantation.

During the September Run for a New Life, the following people covered “their” kilometer:

  • Professor Michał Grąt, and Maciej Krasnodębski, PhD Hab., from the Chair and Department of General, Transplantation and Liver Surgery, UCC WUM
  • Professor Zbigniew Gałązka, Professor Tomasz Jakimowicz, Michał Macech, MD PhD, from the Chair and Department of General, Vascular, Endocrine and Transplant Surgery, UCC WUM
  • Professor Mariusz Kuśmierczyk, Professor Małgorzata Sobieszczańska-Małek, Professor Bartosz Kubisa, and Michał Buczyński, MD, PhD, from the Department of Heart, Chest, and Transplant Surgery, UCC WUM
  • Professor Maciej Kosieradzki and Professor Roman Danielewicz, from the Chair and Department of General and Transplant Surgery, UCC WUM
  • Jarosław Czerwiński, PhD Hab., from the Medical Emergency Department, WUM
  • Olga Tronina, PhD Hab., from the Department of Transplantation Medicine, Nephrology and Internal Diseases, UCC WUM
  • Dr. Dorota Miszewska Szyszkowska from the Transplantation Medicine and Nephrology Clinic at the UCC WUM Infant Jesus Clinical Hospital
  • Krzysztof Zając, Transplantation Coordinator at the Central Clinical Hospital, UCC WUM
  • Anna Lis, Transplantation Coordinator at the Infant Jesus Clinical Hospital in Warsaw, UCC WUM
  • Edyta Karpeta, MD, PhD, Transplantation Coordinator at the Infant Jesus Clinical Hospital in Warsaw, UCC WUM
  • Dominik Olejniczak, PhD Hab., WUM Department of Public Health
  • Jakub Kościółek, specialist for mechanical circulatory support devices, UCC WUM
  • Zuzanna Strząska-Kliś, specialist for mechanical circulatory support devices, UCC WUM
  • Aleksandra Dołęga, from the Immunogenetics Laboratory at the University Center for Laboratory Medicine, UCC WUM

The team with the best time won the run. This year, the top step welcomed the team that included Professor Maciej Kosieradzki. Second came the team that included Professor Michał Grąt and Edyta Karpeta, MD, PhD. Prof. Tomasz Jakimowicz won the individual competition. But both the winners and all other participants agreed in emphasizing that the point was not to be the fastest! Rather, this was about participating and thus promoting organ donation and knowledge about transplantation procedures.

“The runners include many transplant recipients. They are fit and enjoy every day they were gifted by modern medicine. That is why it is worth promoting the idea of organ donation and making people aware that one person can save many lives,” said Professor Michał Grąt, Vice Rector for International Relations, Promotion and Development at the WUM, Director at the Department of General, Transplantation and Liver Surgery, UCC WUM, and national consultant on clinical transplantology. 

UCC WUM – a strong transplantation center

The WUM University Clinical Center performs transplantations of the liver, kidneys, pancreas, bone marrow, cornea, lungs, heart, as well as multi-organ transplantations, both in adults and in children. We constantly develop transplantation programs to give a chance to patients who previously could not even hope for health or life. This is possible thanks to the outstanding transplantation teams and state-of-the-art equipment. The figures speak for our commitment. In 2024, nearly half of all liver transplantations in Poland were carried out at the UCC WUM. We saved the lives of 260 patients in need of kidney transplants, of which 25 cases involved kidneys donated by living donors. We carried out 15 transplantations of the pancreas, 33 of the heart, of which 11 were in children, as well as 9 lung transplantations. 

Since the beginning of 2025, we have already carried out 465 transplantations. We recently wrote about a transplantation that saved the life of an eighteen-year-old with a rare and severe case of the hepatopulmonary syndrome. Thanks to the effort of our physicians, the patient has returned to school this September. The article: “Extremely difficult transplant saves the life of an eighteen-year-old. Conference at WUM”.

 

About forty people are standing on the grass in front of a yellow and white palace building. The women and men are wearing colorful sports shirts and holding Nordic walking poles. On the left side, there is a white banner with logos, and on the right side, there is a white tent.
About twenty people pose in front of a colorful banner with the words “Run for a new life.” Participants wear shirts with a heart and the slogan “Together for transplantation.” In the background, adults and children in similar outfits can be seen.
About thirty people are standing on a covered stage. They are wearing colorful T-shirts with the logo “Run for a New Life.” They are smiling and waving at the camera. Behind the stage, there is a building with sculptures on the roof.
A gray-haired man in the foreground smiles to the camera. In the background the participants of the “Run for a new life.”
A man wearing a T-shirt with the words “POLSKA TRANSPLANTOLOGIA” (Polish Transplantology) and a colorful pattern is standing on the grass in front of a yellow palace with green shutters. In the background, you can see a group of people in sportswear. On the left, there is a stage with a black roof, and on the right, a white tent.
A man wearing glasses stands with his back to the camera. He is wearing a white T-shirt with red lettering that reads “I SUPPORT POLISH TRANSPLANTOLOGY.” In the background, there are several people wearing colorful sports outfits. Behind them is a large banner with graphics and illegible lettering.
A middle-aged man is holding a nordic walking pole and has his left hand on a boy's shoulder. They are both standing on the grass in front of a yellow building with decorative elements. The man is wearing a T-shirt with the words “Run for a new life.” In the background, there are several people wearing T-shirts with the words “Polish Transplantology.”
A woman and a man wearing white T-shirts with colorful prints are standing on the grass with Nordic walking poles. In the background, you can see a yellow palace with decorative windows. Behind them stands a group of people wearing similar sports outfits.
A woman wearing a white T-shirt with a colorful print and black leggings walks through a gate with sponsor logos. She is holding Nordic walking poles. In the background, there is a tent with the words “We have more than one life in us” and a banner with the slogan “Run for a new life."
A man wearing a colorful T-shirt with the words “Run for a new life” and the logo “Polska Transplantologia” (Polish Transplantology) is standing on the grass in front of the palace. The man is holding Nordic walking poles. In the background, you can see participants of the event, tents, and a stage.
A middle-aged woman is walking with Nordic walking poles. She has short blonde hair, glasses, a white blouse with a colorful pattern, and red pants. In the background, there is a banner with the logo “ORLEN Fundacja im. Łukasiewicza” and the inscription “Bieg po nowe życie” (Run for a new life). There are trees on the left, a tent on the right, and the museum building in Wilanów.
A middle-aged man is walking with Nordic walking poles. He is wearing a blue T-shirt with a colorful print and the words “Run for a New Life.” Next to him is a person wearing a yellow T-shirt. In the background, you can see a yellow building, a white tent, and a banner with a red heart symbol and the words “Run for a New Life.” .
A woman with Nordic walking poles during a run. In the background, there is a large red and white balloon with the words “SPORTOWA WARSZAWA” (SPORTY WARSAW). On the left, a group of people are applauding. Further away, you can see the race participants and the finish line gate with the sponsors' logos.
A man in a white T-shirt, green shorts, and a black cap, and a woman in a black sweatshirt and white pants are walking toward the finish line. They are both wearing race numbers with a heart and the words “Run for a New Life.” In the background, you can see balloons with the inscription “SPORTOWA WARSZAWA” (Sporty Warsaw) and fans clapping behind the barriers.
A man is holding two children by the hands. They are all wearing T-shirts with a colorful print and the words “Run for a new life.” They are standing on green grass in front of a yellow palace. In the background, you can see a white tent with the PZU logo and the starting gate with the sponsors' logos. The weather is cloudy.
A man is participating in a sporting event. He is wearing a colorful T-shirt with the words “Run for a new life” and “Polish Transplantology.” He is holding Nordic walking poles. He has sunglasses on his head. In the background, there is a white tent with transparent walls. Other participants are inside.
Eight people are standing in front of a wall with the inscription “28th Run for a New Life – Warsaw 2023.” Two women and two men are wearing T-shirts with the inscription “Together for Transplantology” and medals around their necks. Each person is holding a medal in their hand. The wall features the logos of the sponsors.
Five people pose in front of a wall with sponsors' logos during the 28th Run for New Life in Warsaw. Three women and two men wear colorful sports shirts and hold Nordic walking poles. Four of them are holding signs with the word “Life,” and one woman is holding a poster with a heart and the words “Run for a New Life.”
On stage, a man in a sports shirt raises a trophy.
A man wearing a colorful T-shirt with the words “Run for a new life” is sitting opposite a blonde woman holding a notebook and a pen. The meeting is taking place in an elegant room.
Identifier 28. Run for a New Life. In the center, there is a red heart with white lettering that reads “Run for a New Life.” The background consists of colorful flowers and leaves. At the top, there is the inscription “28. RUN FOR A NEW LIFE,” and at the bottom, “Warsaw – September 6, 2025.”
Three men are standing on a stage in front of a building with yellow and white elements. They are wearing white T-shirts with colorful prints and the words “Run for a new life.”
A group of women and men are walking along a Nordic walking trail in the open air. The participants are wearing colorful T-shirts with start numbers. Some of them are holding poles. The trail is marked with cones and surrounded by barriers. In the background, you can see trees, spectators, and other participants. It is sunny.