A NORTH-EAST woman has fought back from the brink of death to give birth to her first baby.

Michaela Cotterill, of Saunton Road, Billingham, near Stockton, was enjoying pregnancy until, at 34 weeks, she began having breathing difficulties and was coughing blood.

By the time Maesie-Claire was born, Miss Cotterill was dangerously ill.

She was diagnosed with postpartum choriocarcinoma - a cancer so rare it affects one in 50,000 pregnant women.

Although the cancer grew primarily in her placenta, more than 100 secondary cancers spread to her lungs.

Her consultant, professor of clinical oncology Barry Hancock, said she was the most dangerously ill patient he had seen in 20 years. He sees only one or two patients a year with the disease. Diagnosis is based on levels of a pregnancy hormone called human chorionic gonadotrophin.

A woman with a trouble-free pregnancy has hormone levels of about six.

But Miss Cotterill's were more than three million - by far the highest Prof Hancock has seen.

Miss Cotterill, 20, said she felt lucky to be alive and knew she had to be strong for nine-weekold daughter and partner Philip Day.

She said: "If it was not for those two, I do not think I would be here.

"Maesie-Claire was born three weeks premature. She knew her mum wasn't well and needed to be born. I thought I was going to die when I was told I had cancer.."

The former Billingham Campus school pupil was treated at the University Hospital of North Tees, in Stockton, for bloodclots on the lungs, but she didn't respond.

Mr Day, 20, said: "I knew there was something wrong. She could hardly breathe and was getting pains in her chest and back.

"They could not give us an answer at North Tees, so she was referred to James Cook hospital.

"They took some blood and, two hours later, diagnosed her with cancer."

Four hours later, Miss Cotterill was in an emergency ambulance on her way to Weston Park Hospital in Sheffield - one of only three dedicated cancer hospitals in the UK. She was given a high dose of chemotherapy. Mr Day was warned she could die during the three days that followed..

She is on the way to making a full recovery following chemotherapy.

Maesie-Claire, who weighed a healthy 6lb 5oz when she was born, has been tested for cancer and given the all-clear.