A Bradford mum-of-three who is suffering from a rare tumour is making a desperate race against time to find a cure.

Carolyn Fitzsimmons, from Allerton, has been diagnosed as having a tumour on both her brain and spinal cord - a condition which occurs in just one in five million adults worldwide.

She has been told by consultants she could have just months to live.

The illness is sapping her energy, but she has vowed to fight the disease and is setting herself the target of dancing on her 40th birthday in January.

She said: "It is so frustrating. I used to be so active and now I can't even dress myself. But I won't stop fighting until I take my very last breath and I plan on staying around for a lot longer than a few months."

The tumour is so rare that it cannot be treated surgically in this region, so friends are lending their support by searching the Internet for a foreign specialist.

And they are about to launch an appeal to raise £15,000 after discovering a new machine which they hope will be able to deliver life-saving treatment.

The Gamma Knife, which fires beams of radiation into the skull, has been developed in Sweden and is being used for the first time in Britain at a private hospital in London.

The £3 million machine can offer revolutionary 'no-hole' radiosurgery for a range of brain cancers and tumours - although it is not yet clear whether Carolyn's particular condition is treatable by the Gamma Knife.

A spokesman for Cromwell Hospital, London, which offers Gamma Knife treatment to private patients, said: "This machine is very new and many consultants are not aware of its capabilities. Each patient has to be assessed carefully to see if the treatment will work on their particular condition."

Mrs Fitzsimmons was diagnosed as suffering from Ependymoma Oligoden-drogliomas - a brain and spinal tumour - last November. It is so rare that for three months medical experts at Bradford's Royal Infirmary were baffled by the cause of her illness.

She said: "I woke up one morning with a stiff neck. It just got gradually worse and I was confined to my bedroom for nine weeks, unable to even lift my head off the pillow.

"We thought it was a muscle spasm at first, then a slipped disc, then I was tested for meningitis. I had a brain scan, but nothing showed up.

"I went for an MRI scan at Halifax and they found the tumour. In some ways it was a relief to finally discover what was wrong, but when I found out how rare it was and that there was no cure it really hit home."

Her GP, Dr Gillian Riley, said: "It is a very rare tumour which cannot be treated surgically in this region. We are waiting for the results of a third scan before we reassess the situation."

With the support of her husband and three children - Gavin, 21, Shane, 22 and Joanne 18 - Carolyn has already undergone six weeks of intensive radiotherapy treatment.

And doctors at Leeds General Infirmary succeeded in removing 20 per cent of the tumour by taking out three vertebrae and re-fixing them back onto the spinal cord.

Her husband Martin said: "This kind of tumour is apparently very rare but I honestly believe there is somebody, somewhere in the world who can help - it's just a case of finding them, contacting them and raising enough money for the treatment."

An appeal is being launched to aid the global search for treatment and Martin's employer Yorkshire Electricity has already agreed to kick-start the fund by making a donation.

The first fund-raising event for the appeal will be a sponsored bed push next Saturday, September 19. The event starts at 12 noon at The Fleece Inn, Allerton Road and finishes in Bradford city centre.

Competitors will be armed with collecting buckets. Anyone wanting to take part, make a donation to the appeal or stage their own fund-raising event, should contact Sandra Tinsley on 488370 or (0973) 865651.

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