A YOUNG dance champion has had her career cruelly cut short by the crippling effects of arthritis - at the age of seven!

Michelle Halstead has won more than 30 trophies since she started dancing 18 months ago.

The schoolgirl swept the board at competitions across the North West since joining the Judy Clegg Dance Centre in Rawtenstall.

But her career is in the balance after specialists diagnosed junior chronic arthritis (JCA) in her knees.

The disease has already had a devastating effect on Michelle's family.

Her grandmother Barbara West, of Lime Road, Haslingden, said: "My cousin, sister and mother all suffered from arthritis.

"Michelle got up one morning and her right knee was so swollen and sore that she couldn't walk.

"She was X-rayed at Accrington Victoria and given crutches. "We saw a specialist on two occasions at Blackburn Royal but he couldn't find what was wrong.

"Michelle was eventually referred to a consultant at Burnley General who immediately diagnosed junior chronic arthritis. We were shattered and he said it could get worse."

Michelle is undergoing a painful rehabilitation programme which involves splints on her right knee and physiotherapy.

She has also undergone further blood tests for rheumatoid arthritis.

Her grandmother added: "Michelle loves dancing but doctors have told her to hold off.

"Her favourites are old-time and disco though she has also won trophies for modern Latin and rock and roll.

"She was due to take part in a major competition at the Blackpool Winter Gardens later this month and is very upset."

More than 14,000 children (about 1 in 10,000) in the UK suffer from JCA and it is most common in girls. It can strike at any age but usually peaks after six-years-old.

It varies in its severity and can affect joints, muscles, tendons or general health, causing high temperatures, rashes, poor appetite, and weight loss.

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