"I COULD cry with joy. It's wonderful news."

Those were the delighted words today of a York pensioner who gave his heartfelt thanks to The Press after we brokered a deal which saved his sight.

Yesterday we published the shocking story of Les Howard, who has been diagnosed with wet age-related macular degeneration in his right eye.

Les, 76, of Acomb, was left reeling after being told by NHS chiefs he would have to lose sight in one eye and develop a vision-threatening condition in the other before he could be given the injections he needed.

But now Les has been given an amazing offer of free treatment at a private hospital, which would normally cost between £700 and £1,000 per injection.

Nuffield Hospital has stepped forward to offer Les the injections he has been denied on the NHS, in a special arrangement organised by The Press.

Les said he was delighted with the offer and has gladly accepted.

He said: "That's absolutely wonderful of them. It's beyond my wildest dreams, it really is. I would certainly accept. I could shout for joy. I could cry with joy.

"I thank The Press enormously - thank you very much indeed for all that you've done. I'm so pleased about it all."

A spokesman for Nuffield Hospital said yesterday: "Nuffield Hospitals will this afternoon contact the patient at the heart of this morning's story about advanced macular degeneration treatment.

"Mr Leslie Howard from Acomb, York had been told by his local primary care trust that it will not fund his treatment until he goes blind in one eye.

"Nuffield Hospitals, the UK's leading not-for-profit hospital group, will contact Mr Howard this afternoon to offer to perform the treatments he needs, at no cost to the patient, at the Nuffield Harrogate Hospital.

"The treatment will be performed by one of Mr Howard's consultants, Gavin Walters. The costs of the treatment, including the drugs, will be met by Nuffield."

The Press contacted Mr Howard on Nuffield's behalf and arranged the deal.

Marge Falconer, general manager of the Nuffield Hospital Harrogate, said: "This is Nuffield Hospitals' 50th anniversary year and we have been looking for a way to mark our golden anniversary locally.

"When we read about Mr Howard we realised that providing the treatment he needs at no cost to the patient would be a fitting gesture."

Mr Howard will receive up to eight injections of Lucentis in his eye - an anti-VEGF drug which stops the advance of his condition.

Mr Walters, the consultant who will be performing the operation, said the drug had revolutionised the treatment of age-related macular degeneration.

"It improves vision in quite a significant proportion of patients," he said. "A person's quality of life is better if they've got vision in both eyes.

"There have been cases where vision has been very poor and we have recovered a patient's vision.

"I have never seen a drug work as well."

North Yorkshire and York PCT had been one of the first in the country to fund the treatment in the second eye of patients with the disorder, he added.

* North Yorkshire and York PCT says 45 requests have been received for the Lucentis drug since it received its European licence on January 23.

It has approved 38 of the cases and turned down seven.


Age-related macular degeneration disorder

AGE-RELATED macular degeneration disorder (AMD) is an eye condition which causes irreversible damage to the central part of a person's retina - or macula.

This results in the loss of their central vision.

Most people - 70 per cent - have severe vision loss within two years, although their peripheral vision is not affected.

There are two types of AMD - usually referred to as "wet" and "dry" - of which the wet type is more serious.

Only about ten per cent of sufferers develop this type of the disease. It is caused by the formation of new blood vessels under the macula that leak; thus the wet form.

Some patients with wet AMD can lose significant vision in a very short period of time.

One of the most common early signs of dry AMD is drusen.

Drusen are yellow deposits under the retina. They often are found in people aged over 60. Your eye care professional can detect drusen during a comprehensive dilated eye exam.

According to figures obtained by The Press from the Royal National Institute for the Blind (RNID), up to 2,500 people are reckoned to have wet AMD in North Yorkshire.

Hospitals in the county see about 22 new patients a year with the illness.