A HUSBAND and wife from Cwmbran couple are raising funds to help their neighbour who was denied access to life-extending medication a form of cancer drugs.

Deri Groves, 50, and his wife Michelle saw the article published in the South Wales Argus that highlighting how their neighbour Carolyn Davies, 47, was denied access to a cancer drug, and have set about raising the funds to pay for it.

Mr Groves, 50, said: “We wanted to do something to help so have been organising a raffle.”

The pair have collected prizes from local businesses, including meals vouchers from pubs and restaurants the Queen Inn, the Greenhouse pub, Tiffins Restaurant, Page's Fish and Chips, and Frankie & Benny’s, as well as prizes from Morrisons, M&S, and Sainsbury’s, plus more.

They have been selling raffle tickets locally and have already raised £200 but they hope to raise more before they draw it on July 10.

Mrs Groves has been supported by her employer Nationwide, who will be holding a sponsored walk to raise funds later this month.

Mr Groves said: “We just want to sell as many tickets as we can to raise more funds for Carolyn as she is amazing.

“Despite her diagnosis she is still carrying on helping others and has been helping the food bank this week.”

As previously reported Mum-of-two Mrs Davies was diagnosed with breast cancer in May 2014 and – after treatment including chemotherapy, a mastectomy and radiotherapy – she was prescribed Herceptin to try and prevent the cancer from spreading.

But in May this year a biopsy showed she had developed a secondary form of the disease.

Her oncologist recommended that she apply for funding for Trastuzumab Emtansine TDM1, which is currently used in England – but she was denied on the grounds that she had not tried alternative treatment.

Mrs Davies, of St Joseph’s Meadow in Cwmbran, said it was “frustrating and upsetting” as she believes she would have the treatment first if she lived in England.

She said: “It’s not a cure for it; it’s something that prolongs your life.”

Friends and colleagues have rallied around to support her in a bid to fundraise to pay for the cancer drugs.

Close friend Marsha Whant, of Penywain Street in Pontypool, set up a fundraising page earlier with a target of £5,000, but a year’s worth of treatment could be closer to £50,000.

A spokesman from Aneurin Bevan UHB said: “We are unable to comment on individual cases in detail. In some cases where a drug has not been made routinely available by the National Institute of Health and Care Excellence (NICE), there is a process by which clinicians can provide clinical evidence and apply for exceptional funding where they believe a patient may benefit from treatment with that drug.

“To ensure appropriate use of NHS funds, a wide range of clinical evidence is sought to ensure that the treatment being requested is the right treatment for the patient.”

You can donate at gofundme.com/w97qag or to take part in the raffle contact Deri Groves on 07514 820 325.