Lucy Dove, mother of 18 month-old Frankie believed in prayers, and that's exactly what got her son back from his deathbed. Frankie was infected by a flesh-eating bug, which he had caught from a graze to his forehead.
This necotising fasciitis bug, which got into his body, stayed dormant for a while, and then got wild, worsening the kid's condition so much that Lucy had to ask Frankie to 'go' if he wanted to.
A nine and a half hour surgery, which involved removing the tissue from his back and thigh, finally bought him back, and after six weeks of treatment at the hospital, he is hale and hearty now.
"He is doing well at the moment and we are so happy that he is alive," Lucy said.
"We weren't religious, but we are now. When doctors haven't got any hope what are you left with? We started praying to save him and our prayers were answered."
The family first came to know about his condition when he developed flu-like symptoms and behaved as if he was in agony. It was when Lucy took him to the doctor that she noticed the lump on his back, which was a clear indication of the bug that was eating his body's internal tissues.
This tiny toddler was put through a lot, including a drug induced coma for 12 days, to help his body fight back.
To remove the infected tissue in his body, and to repair the damage to his body, another operation was carried out, and a skin graft was done.
After undergoing this second operation, which lasted 5 hours, he was back to his own cheerful self.
"The infection was spreading at a frightening rate," Dove said. "I'm convinced their (the doctor's) speedy action saved his life."
Frankie may still need to undergo further treatment, to ensure that the bug is totally out of his body, the doctors say. Despite being swathed in bandages, Frankie is full of life and energy.
"There was a time when the nurses claimed that he was the 'sickest boy in the country," Dove recalls. Nevertheless, her prayers and the doctor's hard work paid off.
