Charlie Dawson 77661-20PIONEERING brain surgery has freed Charlie Dawson from a lifetime of pain and daily agony.

The youngster used to scream in pain while suffering 50 cramp-like seizures a day but brain surgery has come to the rescue.

The ten-year-old Moredon boy has a muscular condition so rare that he is one of only two people in the country with the disorder.

Charlie has been diagnosed with Paroxysmal Non-Kinesogenic Choreoathetosis a condition which has twisted his skeleton and causes muscle fatigue.

It was this that triggered the seizures but deep brain stimulation has put a stop to them.

His mum Jackie, 41, a teaching assistant at Hreod Parkway School, said her son was a new boy.

"He is absolutely fantastic I can't believe the difference it has made to his life," she said.

"He keeps saying to me that he feels like a new boy.

"He can do things that he couldn't do before like touching his toes and putting his arms in the air without falling over."

Last November, Jackie spotted the procedure being successfully carried out on the Five television programme Bodies Out of Control.

After meeting doctors, the Power Rangers' fan had the operation at the Radcliffe Infirmary in Oxford, filling his family with an enormous sense of relief.

The £38,000 operation involved drilling holes into his head and running electrodes from his brain to a pacemaker-style box in his abdomen.

Electrical pulses are triggered to prevent attacks.

"I was very worried about the operation because there are big risks if the brain is involved," said Mrs Dawson.

"I managed to hold myself together really well up until the time I kissed him while they were putting him under. I just fell apart- it broke my heart. He was under for four-and-a-half hours and when he opened his eyes afterwards I thought yes I have my little boy back.

"The hospital was amazing I can't thank them enough. There are so many more people who could benefit from an operation like this but don't realise."

A few lingering attacks stopped a few days after the operation and regular check-ups will ensure the pacemaker, which Charlie will need for the rest of his life, is working properly.

The Robert Le Kyng School pupil should now be able to spend most of his day out of a wheelchair but to prevent damage to the box he will not be able to play contact sports.

Even though his condition will never be cured, the youngster is looking forward to a pain-free life.

"I feel a lot better," he said. "I feel like a new person."

Over the years Charlie's family, including his dad Kevin, 44, a Honda worker, and sister Chaye, 15, have rallied around to help buy the expensive equipment he needs.

In October 2000, Adver readers helped raise £750 to buy a specially adapted tricycle to help develop the youngster's strength and co-ordination.

Ben Payne