EVERYBODY loves music but, for one Vale woman, it is an essential part of her life as it is her means of communication.

Clare Milne, who lives at the Home Farm Trust, Evesham, has Rett Syndrome, a rare complex neurological disorder which affects mainly girls and causes loss of speech and profound disability.

This month has seen the launch of Rett syndrome awareness fortnight, which hopes to increase awareness of the condition, which has affected more than 900 girls and women in Britain.

Many older girls and women have yet to be diagnosed and their families have lived for years without knowing the cause of their condition. A few boys are also known to have Rett syndrome.

Clare, originally from Malvern, was one of the first people in England to be diagnosed with the condition in 1983.

It means she is unable to talk or sing but has established communication with her family through music therapy, which she received up until the age of 19.

Music attracts attention, stimulates awareness and interest and also provokes excitement and motivation in those who have Rett syndrome.

Clare's mother Yvonne Milne said: "She is the sunshine of our lives as well as the greatest worry in our lives."

As well as being Clare's mother, Yvonne is president of the Rett Syndrome Association UK, which she set up in 1985 following a meeting with Andreas Rett, an Austrian paediatrician who researched the condition.

"I suffered such feelings of despair and isolation but he really inspired us as parents and gave us such good advice," said Yvonne.

"There was a fantastic genetic breakthrough two years ago, which detected that a large proportion of people with Rett syndrome have a mutation or fault, on the MECP2 gene of the X chromosome.

"Our greatest hope now is that the breakthrough will help doctors to understand exactly what is going on in the brains and bodies of girls and women like Clare.

"We hope that eventually gene replacement will be used to stop Rett syndrome before it develops with such catastrophic consequences.

"Sadly, it will be too late to cure Clare but such discoveries will hopefully save tomorrow's children."

Evelyn Glennie, a patron of the RSAUK and an internationally renowned percussionist, understands the importance of music.

Evelyn, who is profoundly deaf, said: "Music has been a major part of my life since I was about eight-years-old. It is a form of expression.

"For people with Rett syndrome, music is a real lifeline because they can't communicate with words. Parents notice how their child loves to respond to music. They have such expressive eyes! Music to them is a way of having a conversation and music therapy plays a big part in helping them communicate in a meaningful way."

An Israeli music therapist is currently studying the effects that music has on people with Rett. Evelyn said: "People often assume that there is something there but it is very limited."

"She has been able to prove through research that this is not the case. There's an awful lot there." Yvonne says she has created certain songs she can sing to Clare to get her to recognise actions, such as walking.

She adds that Clare, who is now 21, loves music, especially Mark Knopfler and Dire Straits, and has come to identify with one of their songs Walk of Life.

"Her tastes are quite varied. She also likes music from the Disney films, Lesley Garrett and eighties group Five Star."

Yvonne has also helped create a new hydrotherapy pool in Malvern, which she has fitted with a state-of-the-art light and sound system.

She said: "Walk of Life is a song that she loves and I think it's working more because she is able to relax through the music."

For more information on Rett Syndrome, go to www.rettsyndrome.org.uk.