Coronation Street has been urged to rethink Carla Connor’s storyline. (Image: ITV)
The UK’s leading kidney patient support charity, Kidney Care UK, has expressed its disappointment to the producers of over the portrayal of kidney failure treatment.
In recent weeks, viewers of the ITV soap have followed Carla Connor’s (played by Alison King) new health struggle after sepsis damaged her kidney, which she had previously received from half-brother Aidan Connor () in 2018.
As the storyline involving the factory owner’s kidney-related issues unfolds, some fans have voiced concerns about the depiction of Carla’s life as a patient and questioned the speed at which she is considering regular home dialysis treatment instead of hospital-based care.
There have also been queries about how Carla and her family are searching for a live donor.
Kidney Care UK has also voiced its concerns about the plot. In a post on Facebook, a spokesperson said: “We have noticed a lot of people feeling very disappointed about the recent storyline in relating to Carla and her chronic kidney disease.
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Alison King has played Carla Connor since 2006. (Image: ITV)
“We first advised them on this storyline in 2018 and were very clear that they needed to respect timelines. This was ignored.
“We then spoke to them last year and explained that we would advise them but after last time they had a lot of work to do to rebuild trust within the kidney community, and that they must portray accurate timelines.
“We advised them on the different types of dialysis as well as realistic timescales as to how long these would take to set up, including operations required and training. These were ignored.”
The spokesperson added that they “appreciate that it is a soap opera” and it can’t represent every aspect of having kidney disease, but expressed their disappointment at having their advice ignored.
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Carla Connor previously had a kidney transplant in 2018. (Image: ITV)
The statement concluded that the charity has written to and ITV again to “express our deep frustration and concerns”.
Kidney Care UK Policy Director Fiona Loud has shared how the show could make changes to Carla’s storyline.
She told the that it could show how hard it is to live on dialysis and how patients normally have to wait a very long time.
She further added that they could promote links to their website for viewers interested in understanding what it’s like to live with kidney disease.
It comes amid a difficult time for . A whopping 22 cast members left last year and five more are due to leave in the coming months.
Among those were huge stars like , who starred in the soap for 50 years, and
ITV has been contacted for comment.
For more information on kidney disease, visit and assess your risk of developing the condition using their quick online Checker at .