A beauty queen hopes to win the Miss Wales crown before a rare eye disorder robs her of her sight.

Nicola Thomas, 23, from Caerphilly, has been diagnosed with a rare eye disorder called Devic’s Disease, which will eventually leave her blind.

Determined to live life to the full and boost her confidence, she entered a beauty contest in her hometown and won.

She now goes on to compete in the Miss Wales competition and if she wins that she could qualify for Miss World.

Devic’s Disease is a disorder where the immune system attacks optic nerves.

Miss Thomas, an admin assistant, has already lost the sight of her left eye.

She first noticed her vision was going blurry while watching TV with her mum at home.

"I was just seeing less and less until one day I couldn’t see a thing in my left eye," she said.

"No-one knows for certain when I will go blind in my other eye but I’m just doing everything I can to make the most of life while I can see"

Nicola Thomas

"It was quite frightening – one minute I was living a normal life, the next I was facing life in complete darkness."

She had to take sick leave from her job with a finance company and spent her days in bed listening to music until doctor’s diagnosed the disease.

"I felt trapped. I was used to going out every weekend and dancing with the girls," she said.

"I’m usually so independent but I was losing my confidence. I felt useless and cried a lot through frustration.

"No-one knows for certain when I will go blind in my other eye but I’m just doing everything I can to make the most of life while I can see.

"I may not be able to see forever – but I’m going to cram my life so full that by time I go blind I will have enough memories to keep me going."

On the list of Nicola’s ambitions was to enter the Miss Caerphilly contest in her home town.

She said: "It was a fantastic feeling to be up there with all these beautiful girls and absolutely to win.

"I could look out at my family and friends clapping and cheering.

"It was a brilliant sight and it will stay with me forever."

She will now take part in the Miss Wales contest next summer. </p

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