British backpacker fighting for life in Melbourne hospital after 'stray kitten bite'

A 22-year-old British backpacker is fighting for her life in a Melbourne hospital with meningitis, blood poisoning and swelling of the brain.

It is believed Scarlet Goodrich, from Devon, contracted blood poisoning after coming into contact with a stray cat while working on a fruit farm near Melbourne, BBCBBC

Her mother Alethea has flown into Melbourne to be by her daughter's hospital bed, where she was expected to spend Christmas.

Scarlet's family confirmed she was suffering from two very rare bacterial infections, which were affecting her spine and brain.

They said she was making "small steps to recovery" but was expected to take at least six months to recover.

"It's still a serious situation and doctors and neurologists continue to monitor her closely," her uncle Christian Goodrich told the BBC.

He added that she was due to undergo further scanning and doctors hoped to reduce swelling on the brain with a new drug.

Scarlet had been working around Australia for the last 15 months.