Amber Marshall helps to raise awareness of juvenile arthritis

It would take another nine months for the worsening pain in her joints to be diagnosed as Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis (JIA) – a rare condition that can require surgical intervention in the most serious cases.

Fast forward three years, however, and the Erskine schoolgirl is back to full health and now the proud winner of this year’s Young American PreTeen Miss International competition.

Amber’s success in the prestigious beauty pageant is partly a result of her tireless efforts to raise awareness about JIA and help other young people with the condition get diagnosed as soon as possible.

Her proud mum Emma admits that, before Amber’s diagnosis, it had been worrying to see her daughter’s health decline, despite following the advice of doctors.

Emma, 44, told The Gazette: “Before she started on treatment, Amber had pain in her left ankle and right knee.

“As she is so sporty and, as a dancer, trains most nights of the week, the doctors kept saying ‘It’s a dancer’s injury and she just needs to rest.’

“However, this is the opposite thing you should be doing if you have JIA because the more active you are, the easier it is to deal with, as it keeps your joints supple.

It was a proud moment for Erskine girl Amber as she was crowned winner of the Young American PreTeen Miss International competition

“We had been pulling her out of dance competitions but the more she was resting, the worse her pain was getting.”

Once Amber was eventually diagnosed with JIA, she underwent two years of weekly intravenous (IV) injections of Methotrexate.

The powerful drug, which is also used to treat cancer, fights the inflammation caused by JIA that can destroy joint cartilage and affect other organs.

Emma said: “The treatment is quite gruelling but they like to hit it hard, as the hope is that it blasts your body into remission.

“I’d say that two months after starting the medication, Amber was completely back to normal, with no pain or anything like that.

“She has been lucky that she’s remained like that since, as JIA can really affect other kids quite badly, to the point some need surgery.”

Thanks to the successful treatment, Amber was able to return to her normal routine and, in February, became the first Scottish winner of the Young European PreTeen Miss International contest, held in Birmingham.

She went on to compete with eight other girls at the Young American PreTeen Miss International competition in Houston, Texas, last month.

Amber with the other finalists in Texas

After taking part in a series of activities, including a fashion show and public speaking, 13-year-old Amber was declared the winner.

This is the first international title the former Rashielea Primary pupil has won since she started taking part in beauty pageants at the age of five.

Emma, who runs local dance school DancExcel, said: “Amber is absolutely overwhelmed, she just can’t believe it.

“We went there thinking it was an opportunity of a lifetime just to take part but to then win, we are absolutely over the moon.”

Amber added: “I had the best time in Texas. One of my favourite things was being able to make new friends with the American girls who were competing.

“They were so lovely and kind to us and brought us lots of American sweets at the pool party. We made the best memories.”

Much of Amber’s recent success is due to her efforts to spread awareness of JIA through community work and charity fundraising.

She has raised more than £2,000 by organising various activities, such as taking part in sponsored exercise challenges and holding an Easter fair at the Inchinnan Masonic Lodge which featured a tombola, raffle and stalls run by local businesses.

Amber wearing her crown and sash

The money raised so far has been split between the Scottish Network for Arthritis in Children (SNAC) and Versus Arthritis.

Amber has also written articles for Juvenile Arthritis Research (JAR), which is a charity that aims to raise awareness about JIA, as well as providing support to young people with the condition and their families.

Richard Beesley, founder of JAR, said: “What Amber has achieved is absolutely incredible and we are hugely proud of her because she is using her platform to raise awareness that children and young people can also get arthritis.

“JIA is relatively uncommon, as around one in 1,000 children have the condition, so when doctors or clinicians see a child for the first time at a GP appointment or in a fracture clinic, they often don’t realise that it could be arthritis that is the issue.

“We’re campaigning to try to raise awareness amongst frontline health professionals, schools and the public about JIA and Amber is doing a fantastic job to help us with that.”

Emma added: “Amber has been off the medication for around six months now and the doctors have said she has a 50 per cent chance of staying in remission.

“They’ve said that, if it does come back, it’s more likely to return within the first two years of stopping the medication, so we’re keeping everything crossed that she says in remission.

“Amber still gets consultant appointments every three months, where they check over her joints, and so far they are really pleased with how she is doing.”

To find out more about JIA, visit www.jarproject.org.