FOR more than 20 years, Ben Styles was told he would never walk without crutches.

Born with a rare genetic bone disease, his parents took him to hospitals from London to Edinburgh but were met with shaking heads and little hope that anything could be done.

Then one day he visited the Royal Devon & Exeter Hospital (RD&E) and now he has thrown away those crutches and is planning to cycle the length of Britain.

The 32-year-old's remarkable story was revealed when he returned to Wonford this week to thank all those who had made his dream come true. Using groundbreaking techniques, the medical team at the hospital had replaced both Ben's hips.

Ben, a renewable energy expert, entered adulthood expecting his condition to continue deteriorating and possibly to end up in a wheelchair.

He said: "I had given up hope of finding a cure but then when I was living in St Loye's Terrace and working at GGF Security in the city, my GP at Mount Pleasant Health Centre recommended I visit Graham Gie a consultant orthopaedic surgeon at the Princess Elizabeth Orthopaedic Centre.

"Mr Gie offered me a hip replacement, which he told me would enable me to walk unaided. It was amazing. So many doctors had said I would not walk again.

"I said I would think about it. I suppose I had got use to being disabled and it was actually quite a daunting prospect to be without crutches. But then I thought: 'What have I got to lose?' and went ahead."

They did each hip separately, six weeks apart.

Ben said: "My muscle strength was pretty low but within a few months I was walking around without crutches.

"My brother Matthew, 23, who was born with the same condition, had the same surgery later and our lives have been turned around.

"I remember that summer so well. The first night without crutches, we took a taxi into Exeter and went to the Cavern. It was so liberating."

This year marks the 40th anniversary of the Exeter hip, which is the most widely used and successful cemented hip replacement in the world.

To celebrate the landmark event and their mobility, Ben and Matthew are cycling from John o'Groats to Land's End next month.

Ben said: "It is something we could not have dreamed of doing without the RD&E.

"We are hoping to raise £10,000 for Joint Action, the research appeal for the British Orthopaedic Association."

In the run up to the ride, which starts on Sunday, May 9, the brothers are organising several events.

Yesterday they were at Exeter's Princess Elizabeth Orthopaedic Hospital for a day-long static cycle stint and today they will be in the city's Bedford Square.