A terminally ill girl who was given thousands of pounds by a stranger to help prolong her life has died.

Sacha Skinner, 13, appeared in The Argus in 2005 after her parents revealed they needed £10,000 to send her abroad for experimental medical treatment that would have helped extend her life.

Sacha, who was five when she first appeared in this newspaper, suffered from Batten Disease - a rare but fatal disorder of the nervous system which meant she was unlikely to live past the age eight.

But the brave little girl was given a glimmer of hope after a Hove property developer read of her plight in The Argus.

Chris Weatherstone, of Weatherstone Properties, donated £10,000 to help fund a treatment in China that involved Sacha having regular injections of stem cells harvested from the umbilical cord.

As well as the weekly stem cell jabs, she also had acupuncture, physiotherapy and injections of nerve growth factor to stimulate stem cell growth.

According to her mother, Annette Dacosta, the “invaluable” treatment allowed Sacha to live until the age of 13 - five years more than the average life expectancy of other children with Batten Disease.She passed away at the Chestnut Tree House Hospice on Friday.

Ms Dacosta, of Firle Road, Brighton, said: “I am eternally grateful to Chris for his donation and to everyone else who helped us.“We had people leaving money at The Argus offices, people doing skydives to raise cash and so much more. “It meant she lived beyond what was expected and it meant the world to me, her dad Neil and the rest of the family.

“I'll remember her for her bravery, for her fight and how she changed our lives. She was amazing.”

Maurene Skinner, Sacha's grandmother, thanked everyone for their support.

She said: “I want to say a massive thank you to everyone who was involved with her life, for their kind donations, messages of support, hospital care and treatment and everything else. “I am so thankful. She will be missed.”

Chris Weatherstone, who donated the £10,000, said yesterday: “It's very sad news.

“Sacha appeared in The Argus at the same time as my son of the same age who was also ill and her story really touched me. Fortunately he is fine now.“My thoughts are with her family, who are all very lovely people.”