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
IPAD GAMES FOR KITTIES TURNS THEM INTO PI-CAT-SSO
Is your cat bored? Do his usual playthings simply not do it for him anymore? Not to worry - there's an app for that .
KALEIDOSCOPIC CATHEDRALS AND CHURCHES
THESE kaleidoscopic-like photographs capture England’s churches and cathedrals in all their glory .
SCULPTURES THAT WILL LEAF YOU SPEECHLESS
GIANT garden sculptures don't beat about the bush .
£34m TAX FRAUD RACKET JAILED
A man who conned tax officials out of £34 million and funded a lavish lifestyle of luxury hotels and restaurants has been jailed for one of the longest sentences in British criminal fraud history .
OUT-STANDING FIREFIGHTER BREAKS ENDURANCE WORLD RECORD
A US firefighter has battled osteoarthritis and four hip replacements to break the world paddleboarding record .
SQUIRREL VS DINOSAUR
A feisty squirrel takes on a fearsome foe when he decides to tackle a T-REX .
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 .
BABY WORKOUT
FROM a Kung-Fu professional to a mini incredible hulk, these are the babies you wouldn't want to mess with .
VICTORIAN TENNIS RULE BOOK REVEALS GAME PLAYED BY THREE
TENNIS was a game made for three according to the first Victorian rule book .
SINGING STOAT
MOUTH OPEN wide, this little stoat appears to be in mid-song as he belts out a tune for his onlookers .
TEEN GIRL TRUCKER YOUNGEST IN UK
Blonde teen Jess Stubbs has certainly got girl power - as Britain’s youngest TRUCKER .
ROYAL FAIL: POSTIE’S CAT FACES EVICTION DUE TO HEALTH & SAFETY RULES
The Royal Mail moggy, who is now facing eviction from the premises – MEET the Royal Mail moggy facing eviction from the sorting room by an ‘elf n’ safety diktat .