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
I GAVE UP MY LADETTE LIFESTYLE – AND LOST OVER 6ST
A reformed boozer, who spent nine months partying in Magaluf, has shed over 6 stone after ditching her ladette lifestyle to become a fitness fanatic .
BRAVE DIVER FEEDS SHARKS DEADLY FISH
A diver attempts to control rising numbers of lionfish by feeding the venomous species to Caribbean reef sharks .
SCUBA-DUPER DIVER BREAKS RECORD FOR 50 HOURS UNDERWATER
A British diver has set a new world record for the longest warm water scuba dive by spending a mammoth 49 hours and 56 minutes under water .
BUBBLE BLOWING BEAR
BLOWING bubbles underwater, this adorable polar bear slides into his tank for a playful dip .
WOMAN RECORDED VIOLENT BF STRANGLING HER AND THREATENING TO KILL HER WITH A KNIFE- WHEN HE SEXUALLY ASSAULTED HER SHE SAW HIM JAILED
Gabrielle Dale, 26, was subjected to seven years of coercive control and physical abuse at the hands of her violent boyfriend Sean Owen, 29 .
AUSTRALIAN TOWN LOCATED UNDERGROUND
A mining town in Australia’s outback appears to be completely deserted, but its residents have escaped the scorching heat by living in underground caves .
HIDDEN HIMALAYAN FESTIVAL
A quiet Himalayan mountain village springs to life for a colourful Buddhist festival designed to expel evil spirits and bring happiness .
CHINESE FISHERMEN FISHING WITH RARE TECHNIQUE
SAILING peacefully across a river in the early morning light, a fisherman in China keeps a 1000 year old tradition alive .
STAR-TI-LING: 40,000 STARLINGS MIMIC HITCHCOCK'S THE BIRDS
STAR-TI-LING: 40,000 STARLINGS MIMIC HITCHCOCK'S THE BIRDS- This could be the fearsome scene from Alfred Hitchcock's The Birds as a flock of 40,000 starlings bask in the heat of a wonderful British sunset .
STREET FIGHTER CRAZE SPREADS TO LONDON
THE CRAZE for mimicking the video game Streetfighter has spread to the streets of London .
MUM LOSES 10 STONE AFTER SON ASKS IF SHE’S PREGNANT
A mum-of-three lost 10 stone after her son asked if she was pregnant .