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A 10-month-old boy who suffers from a rare form of epilepsy is being treated with cannabis.
Oliver Osborn has migrating partial epilepsy, provoking up to 100 seizures a day.
Victims rarely live beyond the age of seven.
However, in a desperate bid to find a cure, his parents are raising money to afford a new treatment from America - that involves liquid marijuana.
Life line: Oliver Osborn, 10 months old, has a rare form of epilepsy that his parents hope to treat with liquid cannabis. He has up to 100 seizures a day but US patients claim the treatment reduces fits by 90 per cent
Oliver's mother Danielle (pictured together) and father are fundraising to bring the medicine to the UK
Sufferers are given a drop of the strain under their tongue once a day to quell their fits.
The formula has been dubbed Charlotte's Web after Charlotte Figi, a five-year-old patient whose condition improved after just one dose.
Also called Realm Oil or Alepsia, is high in cannabidiol content but reportedly does not induce the psychoactive reaction commonly associated with marijuana.
The unconventional practice has drastically reduced the amount of seizures in children - some by up to 90 per cent.
Although the treatment is not yet available in the UK, Oliver's parents Rik Osborn, 29, and Danielle Coils, 28, are hoping fundraising efforts will help bring it here.
Desperate: Rik Osborn (left with his son) is sure the treatment can help Oliver, whose condition carries a life expectancy of seven years old. If they can afford the liquid, he will receive one drop a day under his tongue
Mr Osborn said: 'Hopefully it could be a step forward.
'I've read about a little girl out there, similar to Oliver, who it has been used on.
'It is a strange route to take, but at the end of the day, when you're up against the wall, when surgery is not an option, it's got to be something to consider.'
Mr Osborn, of Peterlee, County Durham, added: 'People say that "if it's not legalised why would you give it to children?"
'But when other medication isn't working, it's something we've got to go for.
'At the end of the day you want what's best for your child and for them to be with you for as long as possible.
'Little things like that give you hope.'
To help raise money for the alternative treatment, Rik is taking part in a three day 140-mile Coast 2 Coast bike ride with family and friends hoping it will help research to take off.
They hope to raise money for Epilepsy Action charity when the ride starts on June 6th.
To sponsor the group visit www.justgiving.com/Oliver-osborn
Hope: 'When other medicine isn't working, it's something we've got to go for,' Mr Osborn insists
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