Boy may miss out on cancer surgery

The parents of a Hampshire teenager with an inoperable brain tumour are trying to raise £100,000 for potentially life saving treatment in America after he was told he may not qualify for NHS funding for it.

Sam John, from Fareham, needs Proton beam therapy - which is not available in the UK.

The treatment is available in Switzerland, Florida and Oklahoma.

An NHS medical review panel are currently reviewing Sam's case to decide whether to fund the treatment abroad.

But Sam's mother Vicky John says they have been told that because he is now 16 he is less likely to receive it.

The National Specialised Commissioning Team, the NHS body which approves the treatment, said: "The panel assesses each case against nationally agreed criteria to identify which patients would most benefit, carefully considering factors such as the severity, behaviour and location of the cancer and timing of the treatment.

"If there is no indication that proton beam therapy treatment would provide a cure or significant improvement to an individual's quality of life then treatment using the therapy is not advised."