by Dennis TowleMIRACLE baby Charlie Issatt has joined his sister with a place in the medical history books.

Big sister, Leanne, who became Europe's youngest liver transplant patient when she was only 15 days old, celebrated her fifth birthday this month.

And it was revealed today that Charlie, too, cheated death when he suffered acute liver failure at birth.

Charlie, now 15 months old, of George Terrace, Barlby, near Selby, was spared the trauma and risk of a transplant by a new wonder drug from America - an anti-oxidant "cocktail" containing five different drugs.

It was the first time the intravenous drug had been used on a new-born child in this country. The effect was immediate and dramatic.

Father Paul Issatt, 39, a coachbuilder, said: "When Charlie was diagnosed with the same condition - neonatal haemochromatosis - we were devastated.

"The new drug was administered within hours of him being born at York District Hospital because doctors knew that his liver could very quickly be damaged beyond repair. Two days later, he was transferred to Birmingham Children's Hospital, where the treatment was intensified to take out iron stored in his liver.

"It took just two weeks for the drug to get the better of the disease, with doctors liaising constantly with surgeons in America. The head paediatrician told us he couldn't believe the blood test results and that Charlie was cured."

He added: "The doctors and staff in York and Birmingham were tremendous.

It's only because they were on the ball with this new drug that Charlie is here now." After a month in the Birmingham hospital and two weeks recuperating at York District Hospital, Mr Issatt and his wife, Susan, 29, a part-time Tesco check-out worker in York, were able to take Charlie home.

Mr Issatt said: "He's completely cured and his liver is perfect."

Leanne, who received a cut-down liver from a seven-year-old because a same-size donor organ wasn't available, has also made a good recovery, and is now attending Barlby Hilltop School when she's not riding around on her mountain bike.

Dr Patrick McKiernan, paediatrician at Birmingham Children's Hospital, said: "Charlie was tested immediately he was born and started on the treatment within a few hours - that's why it worked."

The Children's Liver Disease Foundation runs a helpline on 0121 6437282.

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