WHEN he was just two, Tony Harris was diagnosed with a condition which will eventually result in blindness.

And after a childhood with relatively normal vision, his sight started to deteriorate in his late 30s.

Now, aged 48, he describes his vision as like looking down a tube through frosted glass.

In dim light or darkness, he is completely blind.

Mr Harris, of Tribute Avenue, Cwmcarn, has a condition called retinitis pigmentosa, or RP.

At least 12 members of his immediate family aged between two and 72 have the hereditary disease, including relatives in Trinant, Newbridge and Risca. Many more are carriers.

Tony's five-year-old daughter Amy who now lives with her mother in Scotland also has a 50-50 chance of being diagnosed a sufferer and carrier of RP. It is not yet certain whether she suffers from the condition.

Mr Harris said: "I hope she doesn't have it. But if she's anything like me, she will still have quality of life with RP and I will always be here if she needs advice."

He is determined to prove to others that a visual impairment need not stand in the way of a happy life.

A former worker at British Telecom in Cwmcarn, Mr Harris was forced to take medical retirement in 2000.

Since then he has been active in the Gwent Association for the Blind helping others, as well as helping younger sufferers within his own family.

He has also trained as a masseur at Crosskeys College and is hoping to start his own business from home.

Mr Harris has also represented Wales at visually-impaired bowls and is the Welsh chairman of that sport's association.

"I'm fearless," he said.

"I don't want it to stop me doing anything.

"Just recently I got in trouble with my sister for buying a chainsaw and cutting down some trees in my garden."

And he says being part of a family network is a great support.

"I do get down sometimes, when I realise there's something I can't do anymore," he said.

"But then I will phone a relative and they will give me advice on how to get around the problem."

Condition was brought to UK by pirate ancestor - claim Mr Harris's family is considered a medical rarity, as the RP has remained prevalent among relatives across so many generations.

It is present in at least five successive generations to Mr Harris's knowledge, and he claims his family tree can even be traced back to Captain Morgan, the pirate said to be responsible for bringing this strain of RP to the UK.