6 July 2010 Last updated at 14:32 ET

Droitwich boy tells MPs about his muscular illness

The 12-year-old told MPs that care in the West Midlands had to improve

A 12-year-old boy with muscular dystrophy has addressed a panel of MPs to campaign for better healthcare.

Murray Field, suffers from Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy which affects his heart, limbs and lungs.

The All-Party Parliamentary Group for Muscular Dystrophy said care for patients with muscle-wasting disorders can be "inadequate and not acceptable".

Murray, from Droitwich, Worcestershire, said he wanted his life to be "as good as possible".

He told the MPs at Westminster how the illness has affected him and that he wants NHS care in the West Midlands to improve.

"I love the new splints I've got for my legs and I'm lucky because they're going to stop me needing an operation on my legs.

"But lots of children aren't as lucky as me and can't get things like this that they really need.

"I want the doctors to hurry up with treatments for us.

"I know I won't be able to walk again but I want my life to be as good as possible."

There are more than 60 different types of muscular dystrophy and related neuromuscular conditions, affecting some 60,000 people across the country by causing muscles to waste and weaken.

The all-party group said last August that people with the illness often faced long waits for wheelchairs and having to pay for physiotherapy.

It added that patients often found there to be a "postcode lottery" when it came to life expectancy.

They concluded that official guidelines needed to be given to trusts to ensure high standards of care as well as a review of skills in the health workforce.

A spokesman for the Muscular Dystrophy Campaign said it was very proud of Murray, who has been invited to address the same group of MPs.