If it means I can walk in the park with my wife Pam, and play with my granddaughter, then it will be worth it

John Littlewood

The aim was to reduce the breathlessness and tiredness from Mr Littlewood suffers as a result of his inherited cardiomyopathy.

The condition causes heart tissue to become thicker and stiffer, and this in turn causes an obstruction to blood flow.

If the operation is successful, the attack will kill off the excess muscle and increase blood flow.

The procedure was invented by Swiss cardiologist Ulrich Sigwart in London in 1994 and has been performed several times since.

Totally shocked

Mr Littlewood, a maintenance joiner at British Nuclear Fuels, said: "When Dr Stables told me I was going to be given a heart attack I was totally shocked.

"I didn't think things like that were possible. But this disease is affecting my day-to-day life and is making work difficult."

Mr Littlewood said he had been prescribed tablets for his condition but wanted something to enable him to enjoy family life and work.

"It was not as painful as I expected.

"The pain wasn't too bad at all, but I braced myself before he injected the alcohol.

"It was easier than I thought it would be and I am looking forward to feeling like a new man."

Obviously there are risks involved in this operation as with any other but the procedure will hopefully improve Mr Littlewood's quality of life

Dr Rod Stables, cardiologist

Mrs Littlewood added: "We share the same apprehension, but I am looking forward to it being over.

"We are not expecting a miracle cure - we just want to do the day-to-day things that most families can."

Dr Stables said: "Obviously there are risks involved in this operation as with any other but the procedure will hopefully improve Mr Littlewood's quality of life.

"At the moment, Mr Littlewood's thickened heart muscles are contracting too much and slowing the blood from the heart.

"This makes the walls even thicker and it is a Catch 22 situation."

Gordon Rae, chief executive of the Cardiomyopathy Association, said alcohol ablation would not necessarily be tried on younger patients for fear that they might one day need the heart muscle destroyed by the procedure.

But he added: "Cardiomyopathy can leave a man of that age feeling extremely feeble and powerless and this operation offers him an opportunity to reduce the pressure on his heart, and to rejuvenate his lifestyle."