A STUDENT who overcame 20 brain operations is facing a further setback after she said she was knocked down by a cyclist jumping a red light.

Oxford University student Ashleigh Parry missed five months of her course last year due to problems from hydrocephalus, the water-on-the-brain condition that she suffers from.

Now the English literature student is facing more time off after breaking two arm bones in the crash in George Street on Monday.

Mum Denise said yesterday: “The poor girl has already been through so much in her life.”

The 48-year-old said her daughter, 20, waited for the green man before stepping out into the road near Debenhams at about 12.45pm.

She said: “This bicycle came at her at full speed and crashed into her. It knocked her flying.”

She said that because of her condition, Miss Parry could have been killed if she had knocked her head.

Ashleigh had her first brain operation when she was nine weeks old and she secured a place at Oxford despite not being able to take exams due to illness.

She said: “She has nearly lost her life so many times through having this condition. She is a remarkable girl and she is a fighter.

“She has done extraordinarily well to achieve what she has.”

The family, from Doncaster, are now appealing for witnesses to the collision to come forward.

Ashleigh, a second year student at Worcester College, said: “It has been heartbreaking. All I want to do is get my work done.

“I enjoy doing my work but I can’t do it when I have only got one arm.”

She said she was not sure what happened on Monday, adding: “The next thing I know I had been thrown to the floor. I could not get up. I was scared I had broken my arm. I was bewildered.”

She was taken to the John Radcliffe Hospital for treatment and the family reported the incident to police.

Mrs Parry said she had seen many cyclists ignoring red lights in the city.

She said: “I do think this is a problem around Oxford. I have seen it time and time again when I have come here.”

Sushila Dhall, chairwoman of Oxford Pedestrians Association, said the junction was badly designed and a zebra crossing would be more appropriate.

She said: “It is very sad that Oxford city centre is not safe place for vulnerable people to walk around in.”

Anyone who saw the collision should call police on 101.