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
ABANDONED TAVERN AND FARM SHOP
STOOD side by side next to a busy road, these buildings were once bustling with life .
PLAYFUL OWL PLAYS HIDE AND SEEK
A cheeky owl fancies a game of hide and seek as it peeps out from behind a tree .
CHINESE FISHERMEN FISHING WITH RARE TECHNIQUE
SAILING peacefully across a river in the early morning light, a fisherman in China keeps a 1000 year old tradition alive .
THE FIRST LADY OF FASHION APP
She was recently named Best Dressed Woman in a new list and is regarded as one of the most stylish women in the world .
HER ROYAL i-NESS - THERE'S AN APP TO STEAL KATE'S STYLE
Have you ever wanted to emulate the Duchess of Cambridge's style? Well, now there's an app for that .
EASTER ISLAND REPLICA STATUES DESTROYED IN SEA FALL
A project to create an underwater tribute to the stone Moai statues of Easter Island ended in disaster when 15 replica structures were destroyed after toppling from a boat and into the sea .
ARRR-DORABLE ONE-EYED PIRATE KITTEN
AN ADORABLE one-eyed kitten has been dubbed the 'pirate cat' because of his pirate-like facial expressions .
HOURS FROM DEATH: TOXIC SHOCK SYNDROME NEARLY KILLED ME AFTER LEAVING TAMPON IN FOR FIVE DAYS
A mother-of-one has told how she nearly died after contracting toxic shock syndrome from a tampon .
BABY BEARS COPY FIGHTING ADULTS
SITTING quietly at the edge of the lake, these two baby bears watch and learn as the adults hunt for fish .
SERENE ICEBERGS
A SERENE turquoise glow glimmers from underneath these powerful icebergs .
ADORABLE BABY ORANGUTAN PLAYS WITH MUM
TUGGING at his exhausted mum's ears, a beautiful baby orangutan refuses to settle for a nap as he begins a game of peek-a-boo .
OWNER REUNITED WITH PETLOG CAT AFTER KEEPERS HAND HIM BACK
A family who were refused the location of their missing cat under the Data Protection Act have been reunited with their moggie after the keepers handed him back .