A young boy from the UK needs potentially life saving treatment in America. His parents are trying to raise £100,000 to send him to the US, as he may not qualify for NHS funding.
An inoperable tumor was found in Sam John’s brain. The 16-year-old boy from Hampshire needs to get proton therapy and travel to America, as this kind of treatment is not yet available in the UK.
Unfortunately, Sam may not qualify for NHS funding. A medical review panel are currently reviewing his case to decide whether to fund the treatment abroad.
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.”
Sam’s parents have been told their son is less likely to receive the funding because he is already 16. So they’re trying to raise the money to send Sam to America on their own.
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