A YEAR after he was given 48 hours to live — after he was punched with such force he suffered brain damage — Cameron Shirley has come home for Christmas.

On December 13 last year, Cameron, then 17, was assaulted in the Fishbourne Inn car park as he waited to meet a friend from the ferry. An argument with another teenage boy escalated into a fight, and Cameron sustained several blows to the head.

He was hit with such force, his brain moved 14mm to the right. Any movement of more than 10mm carries a 93 per cent mortality rate.

An 18-year-old Cowes man was arrested, but no charges were brought.

Cameron was airlifted to Southampton General Hospital where he was placed in a medically induced coma, and underwent emergency surgery to cut away a section of his skull, relieving the pressure on his bleeding, oxygen-starved brain.

Six weeks later, he remained in intensive care at the Queen Alexandra Hospital in Portsmouth — fed through a tube and unable to move or communicate with his family.

After spending a year fighting for his life, he has made remarkable progress.

His mum, Alysa Shirley, 41, who runs the Victoria Lodge Hotel, Shanklin, said: "He still struggles with his right arm, but his left arm is fully functional. We're now able to get speech out of him, and we're pushing every day with his rehab.

"He's going to be in hospital until at least the summer.

"We were very excited to have our Cam home for Christmas Day."

Cameron's siblings, Kalysta, 17, Lucy, 12, and Thomas, 9, found it particularly difficult to cope after Cameron was attacked, and were thrilled to have their brother home for Christmas.

They helped prepare the family home to make it accessible for Cameron's wheelchair.

Alysa said: "As a family, we're much closer than ever before, so some good has come from it all.

"Everyone pitches in, and you don't realise what you have until something like this happens.

"We're coping as a family and living each day as it comes."

Alysa continues to spearhead the Cam's Army campaign to raise awareness about the devastating impact fighting can have.

Three schools have already used Cam's story as an example, and there are plans to release an information video, produced by the Island's Glass House Productions, next year.

"It's been a rollercoaster of emotions, with manic highs and so many lows," Alysa posted on Facebook just before Christmas.

"But I will spend Christmas with him on my sofa, not in a coma."

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