A NORTH-EAST youngster is walking properly for the first time in seven years after being the first in the country to undergo a pioneering operation.

Ten-year-old Josh Gray was able to leave the wheelchair, in which he has been forced to spend most of his time, after doctors cured his rheumatoid arthritis by "cleaning" his bone marrow.

Now the youngster, who developed the arthritis aged three, is looking forward to his first game of football and has already tried out his first bike.

Josh, from Darlington, stopped walking at the age of three and was quickly diagnosed as suffering from juvenile idiopathic arthritis.

His mother, Alison, 32, said: "It spread quickly to all his joints and then just got gradually worse over the years.

"He was at an age where he should have been out playing with his friends, running around and joining in with football games.

"Josh missed out on all that."

Consultants at Newcastle General Hospital tried drugs and steroids to help alleviate his pain, but with no success.

Then, six months ago, a bone marrow transplant was suggested.

Experts had noted that elderly patients given a bone marrow transplant for cancer had experienced a welcome side effect - the disappearance of their arthritis.

Only 20 children in the world have been given the operation, and not all have survived.

Alison said: "It was a worry because there was a risk, but it was worth it. Josh is not in pain any more, and is able to do more."

He underwent an operation to remove bone marrow from his pelvis in March this year. He was then given a course of chemotherapy to kill off the rest of his bone marrow before the new "cleaned" cells were transplanted back in.

Because his immune system was so low, Josh had to spend two months in a sterile bubble to protect him from germs.

The operation was carried out by Dr Mario Abinun, Dr Helen Foster and Professor Alan Craft.

Dr Abinun said: "The principle behind juvenile idiopathic arthritis is an immune response where the body's own white cells, the T-cells, start to attack the tissues in the joints.

"By removing some of the individual's own bone marrow, filtering out the T-cells and then transplanting it back, we hope to remove the problem."

Alison said: "We are still taking it a day at a time but things are looking good. We're not at the end yet, but we're getting there.