Joy as cancer treatment mum will see son marry

Carol Player said she is not "out of the woods by any means"

A woman who had to pay for pioneering cancer treatment after coronavirus halted NHS clinical trials will now be able to see her son get married.

An appeal raised £50,000 for the chemosaturation of Carol Player's liver which brought the cancer under control.

The 57-year-old from Streetly in the West Midlands had already lost an eye and part of her liver to the cancer.

She said: "I took so much for granted before, but I won't do that again. I'll always treasure everything I've got."

Five years ago she was diagnosed with ocular melanoma and had her right eye removed the following morning.

In November 2019, part of her liver had to be removed, but it did not stop the cancer.

Her hopes of a pioneering treatment on the NHS - chemosaturation, using the drug melphalan - at the Clatterbridge Cancer Centre in Wirral were dashed when the trial was halted due to the pandemic.

The government said cancelling trials was based on local clinical decisions.

Alex Player said he is "very close" to his mother

Her son Alex, who is due to marry in September, led the fundraising effort with his brother Adam.

"To have mum there on that day as opposed to bringing it forward... it just means everything to me," he said.

Dr Sachin Modi said the treatment had shrunk the lesions on Mrs Player's liver so they were now invisible on an MRI scan.

He said: "She's had an excellent response [to the treatment] and the disease in her liver is controlled at the moment."

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Mrs Player said she is realistic and not "out of the woods by any means".

"With cancer as everybody knows, it can just spring back at any time," she added.

She is due more of the treatment and needs to raise another £40,000 to pay for it, but said she was "eternally grateful" to everyone who has contributed so far.

"Every day I wake up now and I look at the weather, I look at the sunshine, the birds, everything with nature means something to me now."