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
PHOTOGRAPHER CAPTURES UNIQUE PATTERNS OF THE HUMAN EYE
A Romanian photographer has captured the unique patterns of hundreds of human eyes in a series of striking macro shots .
OWLS PLAY TUG-OF-WAR
TUGGING on the wing of his sibling, this needy owl is after some attention .
'GRENADE' DIET PILLS PUT AIRPORTS ON ALERT
AIRPORT staff have been put on alert after diet pills that come in grenade shaped containers sparked security alerts .
BRITISH COUPLE FIRST TO TIE THE KNOT INSIDE A GLACIER
A BRITISH couple are the first to tie the knot inside an enormous GLACIER in Iceland .
PEE-TRIFIED: WOMAN HAS IRRATIONAL FEAR OF TOILETS
A woman with an irrational fear of toilets goes POTTY on the loo and runs away when she flushes, terrified it will swallow her up .
MAN CONTINUES HIS WORLD MAP BACK TATTOO
An American man continues on his mission to document his journey around the globe by completing a world map tattoo on his back .
FROZEN IN TIME LIGHTHOUSE
This frozen lighthouse in Michigan could easily be mistaken for a still from the snow swept disaster movie The Day After Tomorrow .
SNOWHERE TO HIDE MY NUTS! RARE RED SQUIRRELS FROLIC IN THE SNOW
If you had to scrape the snow off your car this morning or slip-slide your way into work over icy pavements spare a thought for these little critters .
SLEEPING BEAUTIES
Lying angelically with a range of expressions etched on their tiny faces, little bundles of joy are innocently captured in their first few days in these adorable photographs .
PRAIRIE DOG AND STARLING STAND-OFF
This starling and prairie dog will not back down an inch as they have a fearsome stand-off over who gets to eat a nut .
BURSTING FIREWORKS
BURSTING colours of reds, pinks and purples give the illusion of a collection of stunning flowers .
MY EVIL STEP-DAUGHTER TROLLED HERSELF TO DESTROY ME…AND MY MARRIAGE!
When Louise Steen walked down the aisle, she imagined a perfect future with her older hubby – but her life would soon become a living hell .