A FUNDRAISER has eclipsed its £300,000 target to give a girl life-saving cancer treatment.

Lily Wythe, 14, will now be able to fly out to Seattle in the USA to take part in medical trials to treat her brain tumour, after she was given months to live last year.

The incredible achievement has been thanks to Lily's friend Lillie Cotgrove starting an online campaign called "The One Pound Warriors" and inviting new members to donate at least £1 to Lily's cause.

The Benfleet 13-year-old's campaign raised £230,000 within a week.

Lillie has been overwhelmed by the response she has had, not only from her community but from supporters around the world and celebrities including TV presenters, sportsmen and women and reality TV stars.

She came up with the business idea for a Dragon’s Den-style competition at her school.

Aided by her mum Sarah who set up the group, Lily’s desperate story has touched so many hearts, sky-rocketing the total raised for Lily’s treatment from £70,000 a week ago to the target needed to pay for the medical treatment at Seattle Children’s Hospital, although the family will still need to cover their expenses in the States. And they may need to fly back and forth several times.

Strictly Come Dancing’s Saffron Barker, Lily’s favourite YouTuber, has shared the story and celebrities ranging from Jonathan Ross, Rachel Riley, Ryan Clark and Keith Lemon to Steven Gerrard, social media star Mrs Hinch, singer Gabrielle Aplin and TOWIE’s Gemma Collins have also tweeted and/or donated.

Around the world people have been finding ways to donate, including a child going through cancer treatment who donated her €50 birthday money, a woman in Spain who has given a villa holiday to be raffled, Richard Branson offering flights to Seattle, and a £500 donation from an Essex entrepreneur.

Lily, who along with Lillie, is a pupil at Eastwood Academy, was diagnosed four months ago with a high-grade diffuse intrinsic pontine glioma (DIPG). The survival prognosis for this type of brain tumour – the deadliest type of childhood cancer – is eight to 12 months.

Diane Wythe, 40, Lily’s mum, said: “Our last chance to keep Lily alive is a pioneering clinical trial at Seattle Children’s Hospital. But the medical costs will be at least £300,000. We started crowdfunding and by Thursday morning of last week the total stood at £70,000.

"I am a self-employed beautician and I can’t work at the moment because of Lily, save for the odd appointment in the evening. Martin and I have put our savings into getting this life-line treatment.

"Lily and I never imagined we would manage to raise the £300,000 or that it would happen so quickly with such an incredible response to Lillie’s One Pound Warriors. We can’t believe there are so many people out there who have been touched by Lily, with people giving away precious savings or even their wages and children their pocket money. Lily is blown away by it all.

"I want people to rest assured that any donations not needed for Lily, will be given to charity. We aren’t making any money out of this.

"Lily had a scan on Sunday and we will get the results next week which can then be sent to Seattle Children’s Hospital to find out what the next move is.

"This has happened so quickly, we haven’t even had the chance to get our visas ready, so that needs to happen fast."

Lillie Cotgrove said: “When I first heard about Lily’s diagnosis, I felt helpless. Now that I have done the Facebook group and enlisted the support of so many other people, I feel like I’ve done something really positive. I’m so grateful to everyone who got involved to make this a success.

Lillie’s dad Mark added: “It’s just incredible really. It was born out of the helplessness of the situation and wanting to do something to help her dear friend. It’s fantastic what has been achieved in such a short space of time. I couldn’t be prouder of my daughter.

"Lily is an absolute inspiration. If anyone can beat this horrible disease, she can.”

Hugh Adams, head of stakeholder relations at Brain Tumour Research, said: “This is the most extraordinary achievement. Huge congratulations to Lillie and everyone who has got involved with The One Pound Warriors.

“Our hearts go out to the family of Lily Wythe as they start preparing for further treatment which they had been told by doctors in the UK wasn’t possible. It is just not acceptable that families who have loved ones affected by brain tumours are sent home and told to make memories. On behalf of us all at Brain Tumour Research, I would like to wish Lily and her family all the very best.

“We desperately need to increase the investment in research into brain tumours so that people don’t have to resort to raising hundreds of thousands of pounds to access treatment abroad. It’s only through research that we will find more effective treatments for brain tumour patients and ultimately a cure.”

Brain Tumour Research funds sustainable research at dedicated centres in the UK. It also campaigns for the Government and the larger cancer charities to invest more in research into brain tumours in order to speed up new treatments for patients and, ultimately, to find a cure. The charity is calling for a national annual spend of £35 million in order to improve survival rates and patient outcomes in line with other cancers such as breast cancer and leukaemia and is also campaigning for greater repurposing of drugs.