FOR six hours, Catherine Dennis's parents thought they would not see their tiny daughter celebrate Christmas.

When her mother was 21 weeks pregnant she was told that both Catherine and her twin brother had died in the womb.

It was one heartbreak too many for Debbie and Michael Dennis, who had already lost five babies in their attempts to have a second child.

But the couple and their doctors underestimated the fighting spirit of the baby.

Despite doctors declaring her dead, Catherine clung to life and, six hours later, doctors detected signs of a heartbeat.

After struggling for another seven weeks, she was born on July 20, 1997, weighting 2lb 8oz. She was placed into a special baby care unit at Newcastle Royal Victoria Infirmary but still needed life-saving surgery.

As Catherine, now three, excitedly opened her Christmas presents on Monday, her parents marvelled at their little miracle.

Debbie, 37, said: "Catherine has battled through so much - she was really meant to be."

The couple, from Peterlee, County Durham, had already lost a boy Robert in 1996, and then two sets of twins - one at 17 weeks, the other at 19 weeks.

Council worker, Michael, 48, said: "When we look at her now it is hard to believe how ill she was and what she went through. We are just so thankful."