Hope builds for family of CJD sufferer after new drug treatment

DON SIMMS does not want to be seen as a crusader. But there are those from Taiwan to the United States who may disagree.

The lives of the Belfast man, his wife Karen and their six children were turned upside down more than 18 months ago when their son Jonathan was diagnosed with the human form of BSE, vCJD.

Jonathan, then 17, had only a year to live, the family were told. Experts said there were no drugs available to arrest what would be a slow and painful journey to death.