Lyla's parents are campaigning for mandatory diabetes testing after their daughter died from diabetic ketoacidosis

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Yorkshire toddler Lyla Story was just two years old when she died from undiagnosed type 1 diabetes(Image: John Story)

The relatives of a young girl who passed away 16 hours after a GP incorrectly diagnosed her with tonsillitis are now campaigning for legislative reform.

The ‘caring, kind and beautiful’ toddler developed diabetic ketoacidosis (DKA) and a gastrointestinal bleed. However, just hours before, a GP had informed her parents it was tonsillitis, despite her displaying warning signs associated with the fatal condition including an increased number of wet nappies, extreme fatigue and heightened thirst.

Honouring the memory of the little girl with the “biggest heart”, her father, John, from Hull in East Yorkshire said: “Lyla was the perfect blend of her mummy and daddy. She was bright, articulate, caring, sharing and kind.

“She was cheeky, independent, sassy and had her daddy wrapped around her finger. Her passing has devastated us, and all that knew her. There is a hole in our hearts that is irreparable.”

Unrecognizable male pediatrician examining curly little patient with help of stethoscope, blurred background

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A GP incorrectly diagnosed Lyla Story with tonsillitis(Image: SeventyFour via Getty Images)

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Her relatives portrayed Lyla as “full of life, independent and headstrong”. The youngster with a mischievous sense of humour adored painting, singing, and delighted in laughing with older sibling Jack and playing with the family dog, Cooper, reports Yorkshire Live.

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The family are now pushing for the establishment of Lyla’s Law, which would make NICE Guideline NG18 legally binding and ensure compulsory diabetes screening for infants, toddlers, children and adolescents whenever any of the ‘4 T’s’ manifest: Toileting, Thirst, Tiredness and Thinning. The petition has already gathered more than 100,000 signatures, guaranteeing it will be timetabled for parliamentary discussion.

As part of his campaign, John is appealing to GP surgeries and healthcare providers across the UK to stock blood glucose and ketone urine dip test kits, display Diabetes UK’s ‘4 T’s’ poster, and share Lyla’s story and petitions within their networks.

John expressed: “Having received more than 300 heart-breaking emails and thousands of comments online, the systemic failings in GPs constantly ruling out type 1 diabetes without even testing before a child ends up being diagnosed in critical care must stop.

“Type 1 diabetes is an autoimmune condition that in most cases are brand new to a family. It does not discriminate. It does not care how old you are, whether it runs in families or not, your ethnicity or whether you are healthy or unhealthy.

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“Please do not treat this deadly condition with disdain. Please sign the petition, to safeguard you, your friends, your children and your grandchildren.

“Most importantly, do it for the love of Lyla, and many others that are unnecessarily diagnosed at near death stage, or in Lyla and other cases, death.”