Carl Grace's world fell apart earlier this year when he was told by doctors he had cancer and there was nothing more they could do for him.

Determined not to give up, he raised £18,000 for some revolutionary treatment at a clinic in Mexico.

Just three months later Carl, 40, has returned home a changed man. He says scans show all the cancer in his lungs has gone and the main tumour is shrinking daily.

Now he plans to use the knowledge he gained in Mexico to help other cancer sufferers.

He said: "I was dying before I went to Mexico. Now I am 100 per cent better and could run a mile."

Father-of-two Carl, of Filching Road, Eastbourne, was diagnosed with cancer of the oesophagus in April last year. Despite weeks of chemotherapy, the cancer spread to his lungs and doctors said there was nothing more they could do for him.

Carl, a care worker for special needs children at St Mary's School in Bexhill, contacted around 300 clinics worldwide before discovering the clinic in Mexico.

He and his wife Loretta flew out to the Centro de Diagnostico, Tijuana, in March following an article in the Argus highlighting his appeal for £8,000 to pay for the treatment.

Readers responded with thousands of pounds in donations. Just days before Carl was due to leave, Sir Richard Branson stepped in with first-class airline tickets worth £3,600.

After an 18-hour journey the couple arrived at the clinic where American doctor Hulda Clark began the treatment to save Carl's life.

Carl said: "I was in a really bad way and Dr Clark did not know if she could turn it around. I was going downhill very fast and had to be literally carried in."

He underwent blood tests, X-rays and intravenous infusions and a technique using electrical frequencies to blast cancer cells. Doctors also extracted 24 teeth because the amalgam fillings were believed to have caused his cancer.

After two months of hard work and treatment, Carl began to notice a change.

He said: "Dr Clark told me she had never seen anybody fight as hard as I did. My last month out there I felt so good. I could go to the shops and do all the things I couldn't do before.

"When I got back to England nobody could believe how well I looked. Even my GP said he couldn't believe the difference."

The main problem Carl faces now is to raise the rest of the money he needs to pay for the treatment. He had planned to stay at the clinic for two months, but ended up staying three-and-a-half, leaving him with a total bill for £30,000.

He said: "Dr Clark did not say when I had to pay but I don't want to let her down. She is amazing and I owe her my life.

"Of course, nobody knows if the cancer will come back, but at the moment it's receding and I feel fantastic."

Now Carl is determined to help other cancer sufferers in this country and has brought back some of the equipment Dr Clark used to treat him.

He returns to Mexico on Friday for a month, during which Dr Clark has agreed to complete his training.

A trust fund has been set up to raise money for Carl. Please send donations to: Trustees of Mr C Grace, Mexico Treatment, Royal Bank of Scotland, Gildredge Road, Eastbourne.

Carl can be contacted direct on 01323 737990.