A YOUNG transplant patient from East Lancashire is flying to Italy this weekend to compete in the World Winter Transplant Games.

This will be the second time Lauren Leach, 14, of Ighten Road, Burnley, has taken part in the games and she is hoping to repeat the success she had in Nendaz, Sweden, in 2001 when she won a gold medal in the Giant Slalom skiing event.

The St Hilda's High School pupil has also competed in the British Transplant Games since 1996 and last year won five gold medals at the World Summer Transplant Games in France.

Lauren, who lives with her parents, Jean and Jack, and brother Adam, 18, was born with a genetic condition that leads to liver failure.

She had a liver transplant at Birmingham Children's Hospital in 1990 when she was just nine months old.

Jean, 48, said: "Her liver failed quite rapidly. She was born in June 1989 and by January 1990 we were told that a transplant was her only hope.

"She was admitted to hospital in the final stages of liver failure and doctors told us she only had two weeks to live.

"It got to the end of the second week before they found a donor and were able to operate, so she was very lucky.

"She was very weak at the time, but she pulled through and since then she's never looked back."

Lauren will be flying out to Bormio in Italy with her mum this week for the winter games along with 10 other young people and five adults from Britain who have all received life-saving transplant operations.

The team will compete against 140 people from 12 countries for medals in events including skiing, snowboarding and curling.

Jean said: "We are both looking forward to it. There will be teams from all over the world, children and adults who have all had transplants and there is a real bond between them.

Lynne Holt, transplant co-ordinator and team manager for Great Britain, said: "Many of our transplant children and adults have experienced near-death situations and long illness, and it is wonderful to see them able to enjoy a full life, thanks to organ donation. Hopefully this event will encourage others to carry donor cards."