THE little girl who won the heart of thousands of people in Bury is back home after undergoing a life-saving operation.

Doctors say five-year-old Aimee Read is making good progress after having a bone marrow transplant last month.

But it will be another 12 months before it is known for certain if the treatment has been successful.

Aimee has been battling against leukaemia since she was three. Her only chance of survival was a bone marrow transplant.

In December a donor was found and Aimee underwent treatment at the Royal Manchester Children's Hospital in Pendlebury.

Aimee, of Moorcroft in Edenfield, faced at least a month in full-time isolation while her body adapted to the new bone marrow.

However her progress amazed doctors so much that they allowed her to go home last week - two weeks earlier than her family dared hope.

Her mum, Mrs Wendy Read, who had been keeping a vigil at Aimee's bedside since she was admitted to hospital, said: "When I heard I burst into tears. I couldn't believe it. "She was allowed home for a weekend, but we were not told that she could come home for good until last week. She had started eating and drinking, and the doctors said she was well enough to go home."

During her stay in hospital, Aimee was not allowed contact with anyone except close members of her family. Her only contact with her brother Jack was when he was admitted to a hospital bed next to her after a health scare!

Mrs Read said: "When she was in the unit she said she felt like a goldfish with people looking inside at her."

The youngster, who attends Stubbins Primary School, still has to be kept in semi-isolation at home. She cannot go out or mix with friends in case she catches infection.

Aimee now attends the hospital as an outpatient, and is checked regularly by a health visitor.

"Hopefully in few months' time Aimee will be able to go back to school and will be out of isolation," said Mrs Read.

"She is glad to be home, but gets bored because she can't go out."

The family now face an anxious wait to know for certain whether the bone marrow transplant has been successful. The identity of the donor will not be known until Aimee has fully recovered.

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