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Walking the Inca trail is a dream expedition for some people, but one employee from local manufacturing firm Focus SB is hoping to raise funds for the hospitals that saved his life.

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Duncan Ray is aiming to trek for five days from September 14th to 23rd along the ancient trail, reaching Machu Picchu and a height of 8040 feet, in order to support Guys Hospital and St Thomas’ Charity Trust. This would be no mean feat for even the fittest, but in January Duncan underwent open heart surgery at St Thomas’ Hospital in London to spare his aortic root and replace his pulmonary valve with a donated human tissue valve, having gone through the same procedure at the age of 13 at Guys Hospital. Though both operations were very complex, they have enabled Duncan to lead as normal a life as possible. Feeling forever indebted to both Guys and St Thomas' Charity Trust – for the facilities and for the wonderful staff including nurses and doctors who helped his recovery on the Beckett Ward – Duncan decided he would like to give something back so that others can be given the same excellent treatment, as he explains: “This is the very least I feel I can do having had my life saved on more than one occasion by the fantastic people working at these two brilliant hospitals,” he says. “I hope to be able to raise as much as possible, so please give anything you can at the link below.” Duncan has set up a Twitter Diary of his experience that can be found on Twitter @heart_recovery, which will be updated further over the coming months. For those wanting to make a donation, they can visit: http://uk.virginmoneygiving.com/duncanray