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
WOMAN TRANSFORMS HERSELF INTO CARTOON CHARACTERS USING PAINT
A makeup artist from the West Midlands magically transforms herself into famous cartoon characters using body paint .
RABID GIRL BIT NIGHTCLUBBER BECAUSE SHE WAS HUNGRY
A woman who left a fellow nightclubber needing plastic surgery after savagely biting her on the hand because she was hungry, has been spared prison .
N-ICE DAY FOR A WHITE WEDDING: COUPLE WED ON GLACIER
When couples talk about wanting a white wedding, few will be referring to getting hitched on a glacier sat on top of an active volcano .
ADORABLE DOLPHINS VISIT AUSTRALIAN BEACH FOR BREAKFAST
SWIMMING slowly towards the shore, a small group of bottlenose dolphins arrive for breakfast at a beach in Western Australia .
BUDGET DIY: MUM-OF-FOUR ADDS OUTDOOR LOO LIKE BECKHAMS FOR JUST £60
A mother-of-four has revealed how, like the Beckhams, she’s added an outside toilet to her home .
WORLD'S MOST IDYLLIC BOMB SITE BEAUTY
WELCOME to the Hidden Beach - the world's most idyllic BOMB SITE .
KISS OF LIFE TODDLER
A toddler has shrugged off death an incredible 10 times thanks to his parents who revive him with the kiss of life every two weeks .
BIKINI SWIM WITH JELLYFISH
A BIKINI swim with jellyfish sounds like the most painful past-time on the planet .
CAGE -FIGHTER BF FRACTURED MY EYE SOCKET, NOSE, BIT MY FACE AND FORCED ME TO MAKE HIM A SAUSAGE SARNIE AT KNIFEPOINT
After Leigh Hancock, 36, joined Fallon Bramall's boxing gym she owned with her husband, the pair took him under their wing .
NEW DELHI CHILD RAPE PROTESTS
NEW DELHI, A woman activist of India's main opposition Bharatiya Janata Party crosses a police barricade near the residence of ruling Congress party chief Sonia Gandhi during a protest against the recent rape of a five-year-old girl in New Delhi, India, April 21, 2013 .
CHEEKY OWL’S UNUSUAL LANDING SPOT
An owl swoops through the air before making an unorthodox landing - right on top of an unsuspecting man's head .
RESTLESS BEAR CUB
An adorable black bear cub struggles to find the perfect spot for an afternoon nap as he wriggles around on the branch of a maple tree .