Ford and Mustang car fans rally for terminal cancer treatment

Rob Scholefield does not want his children to grow up without their mother, Kim, who has cancer

Car enthusiasts have raised about £45,000 to help a man secure private treatment for his wife who has been diagnosed with terminal cancer.

Rob and Kim Scholefield were told she had less than a year to live.

But when Mr Scholefield put his prized Ford Mustang and family car up for sale to fund treatment he hoped might help, others rallied and raised thousands.

Ford motor group has also leant the family a car, meaning the Northampton couple can drive to appointments.

NHS doctors told Mrs Scholefield, 48, they could not operate due to a tumour's proximity to the brain, but her husband hoped other targeted therapies, which were only available to them privately, could prolong her life, or kill off or halt the growth of the cancer.

To try to meet the £150,000 cost, he put his Mustang on sale for £30,000 and sold the family car.

Mr Scholefield bought his Mustang 2016 5.0 GT model two years ago but sold it to pay for treatment

Mr Scholefield, 49, said: "As much as I love my car, I can always get another car, I can't get another Kim."

Rob Scholefield said he was "blown away" by support for his family

Members of Facebook group Simply Mustangs UK spotted the advert and in a little over a week raised about £45,000 through online auctions, raffles and a Just Giving crowdfunding page.

Mrs Scholefield was told earlier this week she was a suitable candidate for treatment and funds raised so far means she will have her first appointment next week.

Mrs Scholefield will have her first appointment at a private clinic next week thanks to funds raised

Ford UK also heard Mr Scholefield had to sell his beloved Mustang, and a spokesman for the motor group said staff were "touched" by the story.

The company offered to lend him a new Mustang or a more practical option, and has now provided him with a Focus estate as an "open-ended" loan, enabling him to take his wife to her appointments in Berkshire and carry out their children's school runs from September.

Mustang owners drove past a car dealership as a loan vehicle was handed to the family to help them out

About 30 Mustang owners drove their cars past the Northampton Ford showroom on Friday as the loan-car was handed over, to wish the family well.

Mr Scholefield said: "The support messages, unbridled generosity and love has carried our family through its darkest hour and I can now finally start to see a light at the end of the tunnel.

"It's a long tunnel - but now there is light there."