SHE was born with a rare liver condition and underwent a life-saving transplant less than two years ago.
But now aged 4, Isha Khan is a bubbly girl who likes to sing ad dance and who, next week, will enjoy her first day at school.
Isha will wear her uniform with pride when she arrives at Park Hill Infants School on September 15.
She was born with biliary atresia – a congenital condition where the bile duct between the liver and the small intestine is blocked or absent.
A transplant in December 2012, when she was aged two, changed her life at a time where her parents saw no end to her medical troubles.
Although she will be on medication for the rest of her life, her mother Iram, 39, and father Shiraz, are thrilled to see her start her education on time.
Iram said: "This is the start of a hopefully normal life for Isha which is something we didn't envisage a few years ago. We never thought we'd be in this position
"There are still worries, particularly at times of year when there are illnesses about. Isha will be thrown into a class which could be full of germs.
"In her position, if she catches an infection; a normal child would be given some medicine but she would be taken straight to hospital to have bloods taken and x-rays and she will be put on drips for 48 hours."
But Iram said Isha's life post-transplant is a far-cry to the first few years of her life, when she was in and out of hospital and the family had a bag packed at all times in case of emergency.
She added: "It's quite complicated to explain; the transplant doesn't fix everything but it replaces one set of medical problems with another set which are much more manageable."
The teachers at Park Hill are well aware of Isha's unique medical needs and have been to meet her at home.
Isha, who also has an older brother Mikail, 8, will be eased into school life but her mum says she is raring to go.
She said: "She is so excited by it all. I think she'll probably love drama the most because there's always a drama with Isha!
"She loves singing and she loves dancing; that's what she's doing right now."
