A DROITWICH couple who lost their son to cancer have helped buy a revolutionary scanner that could save other children with brain tumours.

Birmingham Children's Hospital installed the state-of-the-art scanner following Debi and Nigel Wainwright's tireless fund-raising.

The couple's son, Alistair, a Chawson First School pupil, was just six when he died of a brain tumour on May 12, 2000.

Initially, his parents wanted to thank the Princess of Wales Children's Hospital in Birmingham, which treated him, and asked for donations instead of flowers.

However, public response was so overwhelming that the couple, of Charles Dickens Close, decided to launch Alistair's Appeal to raise funds for brain tumour research.

Practical way

"Raising money was a practical way for us to deal with what happened," said Debi.

On top of the appeal, they staged a successful fund-raising golf day in May, last year.

The scanner was also bought using money raised by the parents of Joseph Foote of Acocks Green, Birmingham, who is still receiving treatment.

It is the first of its kind in a children's hospital outside of London. Experts hope it will help diagnose cases much earlier than before and increase chances of recovery.

It may also establish whether a tumour will respond to drugs, allowing treatment to be tailored to the individual patient, in a way it cannot be done at present.

"Being able to help buy this scanner is a bittersweet success. It has been nice to be able to help children who will suffer with brain tumours in the future," added Debi.

And the success of Alistair's Appeal is set to continue with the third fund-raising golf day at Droitwich Golf Centre in Copcut Lane on Wednesday, May 21.