THE family of terminally ill Charlotte Wakeham are not giving up hope despite being told that she has two to three months to live.

Charlotte, eight, who has an inoperable brain tumour was progressing well while taking Chloripramine, an anti-depressant drug, but in the last few weeks her health has deteriorated.

Charlotte's grandmother, Wendy Bryant of Devizes said: "The consultant at the Royal United Hospital told us last Wednesday that Charlotte had two, maybe three months to live.

"Charlotte can't go out anywhere without her wheelchair, she needs help to get up stairs and she has started to have problems swallowing."

Charlotte, who lives in Westbury with her parents, Bill and Alison, and younger brother, Leigh, was originally given four months to live when she was diagnosed in May 2002.

After undergoing radiotherapy she has been taking daily doses of Chloripramine, and in April this year a brain scan showed her tumour had shrunk.

Ms Bryant said: "It's obvious that Charlotte's brain tumour has got bigger. After undergoing radiotherapy and taking Chloripramine these symptoms went away. The latest prognosis is such a disappointment because she was doing so well."

Charlotte's family is awaiting the results of a blood test. Depending on the result, her family are considering sending her on other drug trials. Ms Bryant has spent hours trawling internet sites for information about drugs and brain cancer.

She said: "I won't stop. I stumbled across Chloripramine by accident while looking on the Internet. Chloripramine has given Charlotte another year of life."

Ms Bryant added: "It's a living nightmare. We are all going through agony and the worst thing is we are not able to do anything about it."

Ms Bryant will speak at a press conference at Portsmouth University on Tuesday to mark the launch of clinical trials of Chloripramine.