Paralysed surfer says stem cell treatment helped him to walk again [Video]

Seven years ago, a surfer went out to the beach like he often would, but after falling from a wave he was left paralysed and doctors told him it may well be permanent.

Now, however, Chris Barr is walking again and can feed himself, which he says is down to an experimental stem cell treatment.

The new therapy involves taking stem cells from fat in a patient’s stomach and injecting them into the spine, aiming to recover the function lost in a spinal cord injury.

“I never dreamed I would have a recovery like this,” Mr Barr told ABC News. “I can feed myself. I can walk around. I can do day-to-day independent activities.”