AN UNLICENSED drug which restored speech and movement to a helpless stroke victim within minutes was last night being hailed as a "miracle" cure.

The relatives of 83-year-old Doris Holmes, from Bishop Auckland, County Durham, pleaded with doctors to do anything they could to save her, after she suffered a massive stroke.

The attack, caused by a clot blocking the flow of blood to her brain, left her unconscious and paralysed down her right side.

But after agreeing that she could be injected with an unlicensed drug widely used by American stroke specialists, her family witnessed an amazing recovery.

"Within half an hour of this treatment the paralysis was gone. It was like witnessing a miracle," said Marilyn Weerasinghe, Mrs Holme's daughter.

Doctors now believe the drug could save up to 10,000 patients a year from death or serious disability.

While it has been used at the Freeman Hospital in Newcastle on a small number of patients, it is the first time the drug has hit the headlines in the region.

Its startling success highlights how many lives could be saved if the clot-busting drug was cleared for use on UK stroke patients.

While the drug rtPA is licensed to treat UK heart attack victims, British doctors cannot use it to treat stroke patients, despite its use by stroke specialists in the US and Europe.

It can only be used as a last resort with the consent of the patient's family.

Crucially, it must be given within three hours of the stroke before brain damage occurs.

"My mother collapsed at 9.15am, she was injected at 11.30am and by 2.15pm she was sitting up in bed asking for something to eat. It was amazing," said Mrs Weerasinghe.

Dr Ali Mehrzad, who runs the stroke unit at Bishop Auckland General Hospital, paid tribute to Mrs Holme's family for their "courage" in agreeing to treatment.

"It was a unique opportunity. The patient arrived within 45 minutes, I discussed the options with the family and they said go for it," said Dr Mehrzad.

"It may be that we were just lucky but it worked in a way which amazed us all," he said.

The UK licensing authorities require more evidence of rtPA's safety and effectiveness, before giving it the go-ahead.

The consultant, who plans to use the drug again in the right circumstances, said he believed that use of rtPA combined with faster hospitalisation of stroke victims could save up to 10,000 patients a year from severe disability or death.

The Stroke Association said it was pressing for more specialist stroke centres to be opened across the country.