AFTER a lifetime of being fed through a tube, it turns out eight-year-old Tilly Merrell has absolutely nothing wrong with her.

The discovery by American doctors that Tilly's "isolated bulbar palsy" was nothing more than swollen tonsils has, quite rightly, come as a bit of a shock for her and her family.

It also poses some tough questions.

Why have so many of our doctors got it wrong all these years?

Having been subjected to countless tests and examinations in her short life, we find it hard to believe that every doctor, consultant or nurse that Tilly has ever seen has misdiagnosed her condition.

One answer could be that the equipment available on the NHS is so antiquated that, when compared to their US counterparts, British doctors are operating in the Dark Ages.

We hope these questions will be answered in due course.

What we can concentrate on today, of course, is joining Tilly and her family in celebrating her new lease of life.

We can all share in the joy with which she was able to throw off her special backpack containing her hated liquid food supply.

Don't forget, it was thanks to the generosity of Evening News readers in raising £10,000 for her, that Tilly was able to make this trip with her family to America.

Those that took part have changed one little girl's life for the better. It will taste all the more sweet for your efforts.