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
KALEIDOSCOPIC CATHEDRALS AND CHURCHES
THESE kaleidoscopic-like photographs capture England’s churches and cathedrals in all their glory .
NINJA RED SQUIRREL
A NINJA red squirrel cuts a dashing figure as the little fella jumps up to ten-feet between treetops in the Yorkshire Dales .
POLAR BEAR HUG
LYING back in the snow, these two polar bears share a cuddle as they call time out on playtime .
£10K SPOILT POOCHES - WOMAN SPENDS MORE ON DOGS THAN BOYFRIEND AT XMAS
Vikki Jose, 26 loves nothing more than lavishing gifts on her loved ones at Christmas time .
WOMAN'S SKIN TURNED SILVER AFTER TAKING NOSE DROPS
An American woman whose skin turned silver after using nose drops is warning people of the dangers of medicines containing the metal .
BIKINI SWIM WITH JELLYFISH
A BIKINI swim with jellyfish sounds like the most painful past-time on the planet .
WOMAN REVEALS HOW BOTCHED £280 EYE LIFT LEFT HER SCARRED FOR LIFE
A woman has been left scarred for life after a botched eye lift burnt her eyelids .
FIGHTING FOXES
A pair of snarling foxes go paw-to-paw and brawl after unexpectedly crossing paths .
STUNNING SUMATRAN TIGER CAUSES A SPLASH
BURSTING from the water, a beautiful but deadly Sumatran tiger jumps for food in an Indonesian zoo .
OSPREY FISHING IN SCOTTISH HIGHLANDS
An osprey soars through the air at 30 miles per hour before swooping down to catch its prey from a lake .
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 .
LIVING ON WATER: REFUGEES BUILD A LIFE AT SEA
SAILING over crystal clear waters, the Bajau people of Malaysia live their lives almost entirely at SEA .