TEENAGE cancer sufferer Lydia Harding set off for Mexico yesterday, flying halfway around the world in search of a miracle cure.

Lydia flew out with her parents Sue and Howard Harding, and with the hopes and prayers of the thousands of well wishers who raised £42,000 in four weeks to fund her alternative treatment.

Individuals and groups were inspired by her plight and sent in donations ranging from £1 to thousands of pounds so she could receive controversial vitamin therapy at the Oasis of Hope clinic in Mexico.

On Tuesday Lydia celebrated her 16th birthday, with friends dropping by at her home in Barken Road, Chippenham, to wish her well and deliver presents.

"I am nervous and excited," she said, before she left. "These last few days are dragging now I want to be gone."

Friends from Sheldon School, Chippenham, organised a party for her last week.

And Lydia has been busy attending fundraising events, meeting many of her supporters and dealing with lots of publicity. "People have been really nice to me," she said.

"It has been a stressful time, and quite nerve-wracking but it's been okay."

She faces three weeks at the clinic, first undergoing body detoxification then 21 days receiving vitamin B17 through an intravenous drip.

Lydia, who said she does not feel ill at all yet, said she was confident the therapy would work.

She also paid tribute to the efforts of her parents to support her wishes and organise the appeal.

"Dad has been running around like a headless chicken," she said.

"But I am lucky to have parents I can talk to. I know many people my age find it hard to talk to their parents. I am glad they supported my decision not to have more chemotherapy."

Lydia has four tumours in her lungs, following bone cancer in her leg first diagnosed two years ago.

But when the second bout of cancer was discovered Lydia decided she did not want to undergo another course of chemotherapy, which doctors had said only had a 25 per cent chance of success. Instead her parents found out about an alternative therapy offered by the Oasis of Hope clinic, but they had to raise £20,000 to fund the trip and the treatment.

The fundraising exceeded the target reaching more than double the amount.

Lydia, who enjoys embroidery and painting, also has her eyes on the future.

She has ambitions to be a veterinary nurse because she is fond of animals. She hopes to take a course at Lackham College if all goes well.

And the Mexican trip will include a visit to Seaworld and San Diego Zoo as a treat for Lydia.

Lydia and her parents are committed Christians and the clinic is a Christian clinic. "It is an important part of my life," Lydia said. "It gives me encouragement and confidence."

The Hardings have set up a prayer chain with family and friends all over the world to pray that the treatment in Mexico cures Lydia.

When she was first diagnosed with bone cancer they considered it a miracle when she did not have to lose her leg.

"That was the first miracle. Now we have another prayer chain and we are praying for another one," he said.

Although Bristol Children's Hospital oncologist Steven Lewis has warned it could be too late to treat Lydia's tumours conventionally after her return, the family said they would continue to pray for a miracle.