A STOURPORT man is set to take to the road to make a young ME sufferer's wish come true.

Kieran Williams, of Buttermere Road, will take part in a bike ride from Stourport to Wadebridge, Cornwall, to raise funds for his 13-year-old sister, Jenifer Flynn, on Wednesday.

The four day-trip will cover a distance of 238 miles and Kieran, together with his brother, AJ and friend, Mark Jordan, hope they will be able to raise enough money to send Jenifer to Ukraine for dolphin-assisted therapy.

Kieran's sister, who lives in Wadebridge, has been unable to live a normal life since being diagnosed with myalgic encephalomyelitis - known as ME - as a young child.

He said: "Jenifer has suffered from ME for more than half of her life. She rarely has the energy to attend school and now has home tuition. Although she keeps up to date with her education, it is impossible for her to lead a normal teenage life.

"Her immune system does not cope as well as it should and just last year she was hospitalised with pneumonia. Sometimes even just reading can be too exhausting."

The condition, ME, or chronic fatigue syndrome, has only been recognised by doctors in recent years, after originally being dismissed as "yuppie flu". The main symptoms are debilitating fatigue, muscle pain and mental fogginess.

Although dolphin-assisted therapy does not claim to cure ME or any other condition, it has been shown that swimming with dolphins has a significant positive psychological effect on the sufferer. The programme that Jenifer will attend also involves psychological sessions with specialist doctors.

Kieran added: "We have researched this subject in depth and are sure that this trip will be of massive benefit. It will help the whole family understand ME more fully and the programme doctors help you with ways of coping with ME every day at home.

"It has been a dream of Jen's to swim with dolphins and so this therapy is doubly appropriate. We hope that this trip will lift Jen and we would appreciate any support we can get."

To sponsor Kieran on his bike ride, call 01299 821090.