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
DOG WHO HAD HER EYES GOUGED OUT FINDS LOVING HOME IN THE UK
An adorable rescue dog who had her eyes gouged out by thugs in Romania has found a loving home in the UK .
RAINBOW CAVES
WELCOME to the 750-foot deep rainbow cave that leaves visitors bewildered by its multi-coloured mood lighting .
ADORABLE SQUIRRELS PREPARE FOR EASTER BREAK
Scurrying along the branch of a tree, a little squirrel pushes a pram packed full of Easter treats .
PARKING UP THE WRONG TREE - ROBIN RELIANT FOUND HANGING IN GARDEN
This Robin Reliant appears to have taken a wrong turn after it ended up 15 feet high up in a TREE .
NAKED SLACKLINERS TACKLE NEW CHALLENGES
BALANCING 30 metres above ground, these slackliners take the expression of living dangerously one step further, by tightrope walking NAKED .
DESPERATE FOR A THIGH GAP I STARVED MYSELF TO 5ST 8LB
When personal trainer, Victoria Spence dreamt of achieving a thigh gap, she didn't realise her obsession would leave her body gripped by anorexia .
STUNNING ALICE IN WONDERLAND WEDDING RECEPTION
A couple celebrated tying the knot with a spectacular Alice in Wonderland-themed wedding reception .
WOMAN CRUELLY NAMED ’TUMOUR GIRL’ FINDS LOVE
A woman who was cruelly called ‘tumour girl’ by bullies has finally found love .
CAMOUFLAGED NORTHERN POTOO BIRD IS A MASTER OF DISGUISE
A northern potoo shows it is a master of disguise as it perches on a tree stump and blends into the bark .
PLAYFUL OWL PLAYS HIDE AND SEEK
A cheeky owl fancies a game of hide and seek as it peeps out from behind a tree .
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 .