A YOUNG leukaemia sufferer who touched the hearts of Worcester people has had a pioneering transplant to help him battle the disease.

Schoolboy Robert Tipton is only the 18th youngster in the country to have a stem cell transplant.

The new procedure is seen as "the way forward" for people who desperately need bone marrow transplants.

Stem cells help create a new marrow - giving hope to those whose bone marrow is defective.

Robert was first diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukaemia in November 1996.

His plight was highlighted in the Evening News in November 1998, when his mother Jackie organised a donor testing day in the city.

More than 400 people turned up in the hope of being a match but none was found.

The seven-year-old has since suffered a relapse.

Just under a month ago, Robert's family was given new hope when he underwent a stem cell transplant at the Diana, Princess of Wales Hospital, in Birmingham.

His father, John, donated his stem cells for the transplant.

"We were both tested and we weren't sure which one of us would donate their cells," said Mrs Tipton, of Powderham Avenue, Warndon Villages.

"Robert is doing really well. The transplant was pretty painless for both of them. It was just like them having a blood transfusion.

"Robert was even making a model aeroplane while the transplant was taking place. He's doing really well now."

The youngster has returned home but is not expected to go back to Lyppard Grange Primary School this year.

"We're really pleased with Robert's progress," added his mother.

"He's doing very well but we're just hoping that the chemotherapy killed the leukaemia.

"He now has to stay in virtual isolation for 100 days so that his immune system can be built up. At the moment it's very weak.

"He can't come into contact with anyone who's recently had a virus.

"If he needs more cells after that, he can have them."

Mrs Tipton said the medical profession was not entirely sure of the long-term benefits of the operation.

But it is viewed as "the way forward" for those who cannot find a suitable bone marrow donor.