Fora any small boy, writing his name for the first time is a milestone, but for Tyler Dolan it is a minor miracle.

The youngster was born without thumbs, and it is only through pioneering surgery that he can lead a normal life.

Tyler suffered a rare genetic defect that meant he was born with ten fingers - just like his mother, Clare, 29.

But surgeons transformed the sixyear- old's life by turning a finger on each hand into a thumb.

Tyler, a pupil at Oxclose Primary School, Washington, Wearside, had to learn to hold a pencil with his newlyformed right hand.

His mother said: "His writing is coming on really well. Despite all he has been through, he lets nothing get in his way.

"He loves drawing and writing, like any other kid."

She said Tyler, who will be seven on March 24, is due back in hospital to see his surgeon in July because his hands are still growing.

Clare, who was born with the same rare genetic condition, but also had club feet and extra toes, endured years of corrective surgery.

Tyler had a 50-50 chance of inheriting the same defective gene as his mother, but Clare can find no trace of it in other family generations.

Tyler's initial operation is believed to be the first of its kind in the North- East.

Plastic surgeon Matt Erdmann said: "Without this surgery, Tyler would have grown accustomed to a rudimentary type of pincer grip between the fingers and would have been disadvantaged in school and at work when using his hands for manual tasks."