Talented former Milton Keynes dancer is left facing paralysis after a common parasite burrowed into her eye

Skye Wheeler suffers from the rare condition of Acanthamoeba keratitis (AK), which is caused by a microscopic organism found in lakes, oceans and rivers as well as, swimming pools, hot tubs, soil and even domestic tap water.

The former Yardley Gobion school, who danced from the age of three at MK's Myra Tiffin Performing Arts School, was perfectly fit and healthy until 14 years ago.

At the age of 14, she returned from a dance class with a headache. As her health deteriorated, she was diagnosed with AK, though nobody knows how or where she picked up the parasite.

Today Skye, who is a qualified pharmacy technician, is virtually housebound, has to use a wheelchair and suffers constant pain and exhaustion. At one stage she was bed-bound for 18 months.

She said: "My body does not make enough collagen and that has resulted in the ligaments in my neck and spine becoming loose and unable to spring back like an elastic band.”

“This has led to them not being able to support and protect my brainstem and spinal cord. As a result, the weight of my head is slowly sinking onto my neck, compressing my brainstem.”

If she travels anywhere, Skye has to wear a neckbrace as something as common as whiplash could cause paralysis or even death.

Her family have found a surgeon in the UK willing to carry out surgery called Occipitocervical Posterior Fusion Stabilisation to make her head, neck and spinal junction stable.

The surgery involves raising the skull and extending Skye's vertebrae so her neck and spine can support her skull and stop compressing her brainstem.

It is the only proven treatment for advanced cases of instability like Skye’s and without it her symptoms will only worsen, says her family, who now live in Cornwall.

The surgery needs to be privately funded because Skye's combination of conditions is so rare that the NHS is unable to help, they say.

A fundraising page has been launched in a bid to raise the cash. You can donate here .

The page states: "Without the £40,000 operation and medical costs her symptoms will deteriorate to the point where she may become paralysed or die."

Acanthamoeba organisms do not generally cause harm to humans, and people commonly come into contact with them when they wash, swim and drink water, but they can cause serious problems if they infect the cornea and cause Acanthamoeba Keratitis.

Not all species of Acanthamoeba have been found to cause infections. AK is most common in people who wear contact lenses, but anyone with a corneal injury is also susceptible.