A teenager with a rare form of cancer who flew to America to have a life-saving operation has announced that her tumour has been successfully removed.

Kira Noble, 14, from Edinburgh, has been battling neuroblastoma for three years, but surgeons in Scotland were unable to operate on the tumour.

Her family started a fundraising campaign to raise £340,000 for surgery in New York.

Kira and her mother flew to the US on Monday, and on Wednesday she was admitted to the Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Centre for surgery.

In a post-operation meeting with a doctor, it was confirmed that after almost seven hours of surgery, Kira's tumour was removed successfully.

In a Facebook post, her mother Aud wrote: "I cannot describe my feelings as being relieved - it's more a case of I believed in this all along.

"I believed in the skills of this surgeon and felt confident in his unsurpassable skills in resecting challenging tumours.

"My unfaltering confidence remained with me all day long - my hope and my belief remained strong throughout."

She added that Kira smiled when her her surgeon gave her an update.

Aud thanked everyone who had supported and donated to Kira's cause, saying: "So, so happy and proud to share with you amazing people this fantastic news that you all made possible with your fundraising efforts to help us make it here to New York."