THREE months ago, Amber Hartland's parents feared she had just hours to live.

Now the two-year-old has surprised doctors by how well she is doing.

And her parents say she's happier than ever since they put the finishing touches to a £2,500 sensory room in their Cwmbran home, thanks to a huge donation.

Amber has the genetic disorder infantile Tay Sachs - a condition her parents have now discovered affects just four other children in Europe - and was just hours from death in May, after contracting a serious chest infection.

Since then she has been responding well to Zavesca, an expensive and experimental drug the family have been able to buy thanks to a massive fundraising effort from people across Gwent.

Leading paediatrician Dr Ed Wraith, of Manchester Royal children's hospital, this week told Amber's parents Lesley and Nick he was 'extremely pleased' with her progress.

"He was surprised at how well she is doing," said Lesley.

"A number of children with this condition have died before their second birthday, so for her to be two-and-a-half and doing so well is wonderful.

"She has put on weight and the signals are getting to her brain a lot quicker."

If Amber puts on enough weight her dosage of Zavesca will be doubled in the hope that it will help her condition improve even more.

Tay Sachs prevents fatty molecules breaking down in little Amber's body. It affects the nervous system and can lead to blindness and death at a young age.

Mum Lesley Hartland, of St Dials, Cwmbran, said: "We knew that she had a rare condition, but we were shocked to learn there are only four other children in Europe with Tay Sachs.

"It really puts it into perspective how serious it is."

Within a few months of the Argus revealing Amber's condition, fundraising had topped £30,000.

Lesley and Nick have just put the finishing touches to a £2,500 sensory room for Amber in their home thanks to a huge donation from the Girlings Trust Cwmbran.

The room features bubble tubes and fibre optic lights to help with Amber's development.

"She will never be able to play with toys like other children, so this brings some quality and pleasure to her life," said Lesley.

"She loves it in there. She will spend ages looking at the lights.

"It's been a long time since we have seen her looking this well or this happy."