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
A GRIZZLY GANG
PAWS for thought as you feast your eyes on this rare bear bathing session .
AMAZING AMERICAN LANDSCAPES
This tranquil setting stretches for miles as the sun sets behind the mountain .
A BUG'S LIFE
LIKE A scene from A Bugs Life, these ants work on creating their own mini community .
SUMMER ARRIVES AT LAST
Britons have finally received some good news about the weather with temperatures expected to reach 30 degrees this weekend .
MUM REVEALS PREGNANCY ALLERGY
A first-time mum has told how she was allergic to her unborn baby after she developed an angry red rash all over her body .
ANCIENT ABANDONED WEBSITES THAT STILL WORK TODAY
A host of websites that are almost twenty years old are collecting a cult following thanks to their retro appeal .
LIFE-LIKE PENCIL DRAWINGS
AT first glance these images could easily be mistaken for photographs, but they are in-fact real life drawings created using nothing but coloured pencils .
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 .
ZANZIBAR FISHERMEN RISK THEIR LIVES FOR FOOD
VENTURING into the ocean with self-made spears and nets, the fishermen of Zanzibar put their lives on the line when they catch food for their families .
FIGHTING BABOONS
THEIR gnarling teeth at the ready, these two baboons fight it out for the last piece of fruit .
SNOWY SQUIRRELS PLAY A GAME OF BALL
Throwing their arms up in the air, these energetic squirrels play a game of ball with a walnut .
BABY GIVEN THREE PER CENT CHANCE OF LIFE COMES HOME FOR FIRST TIME
A baby who was given just a three per cent chance of survival at birth has beaten the odds to come home - even though docs told his parents to abort him 12 times .