A brave teenager who turned down the chance of a second lung transplant has lost his fight for life.

In January last year doctors gave Reece Walker-Sharp only three months to live as he had an incurable lung condition. But he astounded them by defying the odds again until finally passing away peacefully surrounded by his family at Martin House Hospice.

The 14-year-old, of Holme Wood, Bradford, who had stunned Great Ormond Street specialists by recovering from his first transplant in double-quick time, had refused to give in to his illness to the last, said his grandad Brian Walker.

He said: “Reece fought it all the way. He didn’t just climb over obstacles his illness put in front of him, he smashed his way through them. He is an inspiration.”

If Reece had gone ahead with the second transplant in 2009 he would have been the first child in Europe to have undergone it.

“Doctors said the survival rate had improved but it was still fraught with risks,” Mr Walker said. “They only offered it to him because he had recovered so quickly from the first one.

“At first he agreed to it because that was typical Reece, always thinking about what other people wanted, but then he changed his mind. He didn’t want to go through it all again.

“It was an incredibly brave decision and as a family we backed him 100 per cent.”

Reece was just 12 months old when he was diagnosed with primary pulmonary hypertension, a rare condition where his blood vessels were too small to allow blood to flow properly, making it difficult for him to breathe.

When he was four he was fitted with a pioneering medical back-pack. It worked 24 hours a day pumping vital medication into his bloodstream to open affected vessels and lessen the strain on his heart.

In 2005 Reece had a lung transplant and was rewarded with three years of improved health, allowing him to learn to ride a horse, go swimming and have treasured holidays abroad. But in 2008 he suffered a set-back when his replacement new lungs became infected.

Doctors diagnosed him with an incurable condition called obliterative bronchiolitis, an inflammatory response that affects 50 per cent of lung transplant patients. In 2009 he was offered a second transplant.

He was given a course of radiotherapy, which helped slow down the development of the condition, but it eventually defeated him.

“We are grateful we had 14 wonderful years with Reece – originally we had been told we would only have about six,” Mr Walker said.

“At his funeral this Thursday we want it to be a celebration of those years. We will be lighting 14 candles and his friends from Bradford Academy choir will be singing for him.”

Reece’s funeral will be at St Christopher’s Church in Holme Wood at 10am followed by cremation at Scholemoor. Everyone who knew him is welcome.

Donations in his memory will go to Martin House Hospice. Mr Walker said: “It’s a very special place.”

Reece also leaves his parents Donna and Barry, five-year-old brother Tristan, and grandparents Brian and June Walker and Barry and Bev Sharp.

Donations can be sent to Martin House Children’s Hospice, Grove Road, Clifford, Boston Spa, Wetherby, LS23 6TX or go to martinhouse.org.uk