CANCER DRUG FIGHT DAD DIES, EVEN AFTER LYING TO GET TREATMENT
A former soldier who bravely took on penny-pinching NHS bosses in his fight against terminal cancer has died, aged 37. Mark Bannister's wife has revealed how her husband was forced to LIE to doctors in order to get the life-prolonging treatment he had been denied due to a cruel postcode lottery. But after wasting six months of precious time trying to obtain the drug Avastin, Mark's cancer was too advanced for the medicine to have any effect. The dad-of-two succumbed to the brain tumour he had been battling for nine years at around 6am on Monday morning, with his wife Karen, 33, at his side. In tribute to her husband, who served in Northern Ireland and Bosnia during nine years in the army, grieving Karen said: "The Avastin didn't have any effect but we had to fight for six months in order to get it. "In all that time his tumour had been growing. In the end, he had to claim that he was living at another address in order to get the treatment. Who knows what would have happened if he had got the drug sooner - I truly believe it would have helped him.
Other great stories
JUSTIN BIEBER FAN LOSES 7 STONE TO BE HIS 'GIRLFRIEND'
Bryanna Debinder, 20, from Pennsylvania in the USA, has lost 7 stone in order to impress her idol .
OLD BUS TRANSFORMED INTO AMAZING HOLIDAY LET
FULLY equipped with a kitchen and lounge, it's hard to believe this modern holiday let is actually a BUS .
MICK JAGGER'S LUXURY GLASTO YURT
FEAST your eyes onthe £3K luxury yurts that rock legend Mick Jagger will be basking in between Glastonbury performances this weekend .
UNUSUAL ANIMAL FRIENDSHIP
SAT ON top of a Brazilian turtle’s head, this little ladybird looks content as he studies his environment from a new height .
UNDERGROUND CHIC
Full of tired and busy commuters, these underground stations are rarely admired for their architecture or beauty .
ANTS IN TUG OF WAR
A trio of ants are locked in a tug of war over a fly as they pull the bug by its legs .
SNOW HITS BIRMINGHAM
More weather chaos is heading our way, with ice and snow already hitting areas across Birmingham .
BALD IS BEAUTIFUL: WOMEN WITH ALOPECIA TRANSFORMED INTO STUNNING SIRENS
A photographer has transformed women with alopecia into stunning sirens - showing that bald is beautiful .
LAZY LEOPARD
Sprawled out on top of a log, this sleeping leopard takes a relaxing break from his daily routine .
N-ICE ICE BABY: AMAZING SKIING 2YR OLD
RACING down the slopes in her tiny ski gear, this TWO-YEAR-OLD girl has already mastered the art of skiing .
CHEEKY BABY ORANGUTAN
CLIMBING, falling and tugging on his weary mum, this little orangutan is up to all kinds of trouble .