Parents say they'd sell their home to fund son's £120k life-saving cancer treatment
26.05.2022 - 23:05
/ manchestereveningnews.co.uk
The parents of a young cancer patient say they would sell their home in order to fund expensive, life-saving treatment for him. Elliott Simpson, 26, was diagnosed with skin cancer in December, 2020 after noticing a mole on the back of his head.
Then a few months later, doctors found it had spread to his liver and a two-stage treatment plan was recommended by the NHS. However, due to Elliott's pre-existing Crohn's disease, he has been unable to receive treatment on the NHS for the second set of drugs needed to combat the cancer's spread.
This is because there's a fear of Elliott's Crohn's worsening if the two drugs are administered together. His father, Hugh Simpson, described the diagnosis as 'the worst day any parent could have' - and revealed the family are now applying for special NHS funding.
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Hugh, speaking to Lancs Live, said: "It's hard to describe and put into words how I'm feeling right now. Hearing that your son has got cancer is the worst day any parent could have.
"But what seems to be worst is when you're told there's no funding. When he was diagnosed there was a glimmer of hope because we were not to worry too much but this is worse than that. It's heart-breaking."
A GoFundMe page for Elliott, described as Blackburn born and bred and a huge Blackburn Rovers supporter, has now been launched. The appeal currently stands at more than £13,000.
The recommended two courses of immunotherapy drugs are arenivolumab and ipilimumab. If Elliott, from Blackburn, was not suffering from the inflammatory bowl infection Crohn's disease, he would be automatically eligible to receive both treatments on the NHS.
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