A young widow hopes to use her late husband’s sperm to have his child, after he died of a brain tumour.

Chris James, 29, died on December 8, only weeks after he started having severe headaches. His tumour was inoperable but before starting chemotherapy a sample of his sperm was stored in the hope that he and his wife, Angeleen Leckie-James, 30, of Redfield, Bristol, could have children. The couple were married for 18 months and had been trying for a family before Mr James's tumour was diagnosed in November.

Mrs Leckie-James said that doctors had told her that the sample was good enough to use.

“There is some good that can come from this, and that’s what Chris would have wanted,” she said. “I plan to get pregnant this year.

“It would mean the world to me as our dream was to live in the country and have a smallholding with a couple of children running around. We even picked out names.

“It’s devastating that Chris will never hold his child but there are no guarantees in life.”

Mrs Leckie-James believes her husband’s tumour was triggered by the stress of being burgled at their home in September. Among the items stolen was a laptop that contained all of the photos taken during their 4½year relationship.

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