A County Durham woman is making monthly trips to Germany for cancer treatment in a bid to prolong her life. PETER BARRON reports
AFTER an exhausting day’s travelling to Germany, Emma Bainbridge will this week take the next step in her international quest to beat the cancer that NHS doctors in the UK have told her is incurable.
Emma will leave her home in Newton Aycliffe at 7am on Tuesday (July 22) to fly to Amsterdam’s Schiphol Airport, in time for a connecting flight to Frankfurt.
She will travel alone, leaving partner, Kevin, behind, and stay the night in the cheapest hotel she can find – all to save on costs.
On Wednesday, she will make her way to the Frankfurt University Hospital for her latest appointment with German radiologist, Thomas Vogl, for her third Transarterial chemoembolization (TACE) treatment.
TACE, which costs 3,900 euros a time, delivers chemotherapy directly to the tumour via a catheter inserted into an artery, while also blocking the cancer’s blood supply.
The treatment is carried out in the UK but only on primary liver cancers.
“It may not work but it’s given me hope,” says 42-year-old Emma. “I'm a stubborn person and I’m determined to do whatever I can to stay alive – I’ve still got a lot of life to live.”
Quebec Health Minister Gaétan Barrette went as far as accusing Dr Vogl of “selling hope”.
Here in the UK, the NHS has chosen to stay silent about the course Emma has chosen. The NHS North East and North Cumbria Integrated Care Board, and the South Tees Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, declined to make any comment on her case.
And yet, Emma wants her story to be told – in a balanced way – because she believes it contains important messages, while also acknowledging the NHS concerns and the risk of spreading false hope.
“I don’t want to mislead anyone because there are no guarantees,” she says. “This is my choice, based on my own circumstances and research, but I’m not saying it’s right for others. It’s about raising awareness so people can find out more and make the decisions that are best for them.”
Emma was first diagnosed with cervical adenocarcinoma in October 2021 after a routine smear test, which she didn't have on time due to the Covid lockdowns.
“That was entirely my responsibility, and I delayed it too long,” admits Emma, a team leader at Aycliffe manufacturer 3M, which makes disposable respirators and played an important role during the pandemic.
“Stressing the importance to women of having their smear tests on time is one of the messages I want to put out. The result came as a shock because all my previous smears had been OK, and I’d never had any symptoms whatsoever.”
Initially, it was thought the abnormal cells could be removed through LLETZ procedures, carried out at Darlington Memorial Hospital and Bishop Auckland General Hospital, but when that wasn’t successful, she underwent a hysterectomy at Queen Elizabeth Hospital, in Gateshead, in February 2022.
“The operation went well. I was informed everything was removed with clear margins, so I wasn’t offered any further treatment, such as chemotherapy. I continued having regular check-ups and we all believed all was well,” she recalls.
However, in the spring of 2024, she had been feeling unwell and uncomfortably bloated for several weeks. She was booked in for tests but, in the meantime, suffered “excruciating pain” in her stomach. A call to 111 led to her being advised to go to hospital.
After around nine hours in A&E in Darlington, severe breathing problems resulted in an emergency CT scan, which confirmed the presence of a significant ascites, a condition caused by fluid collecting in the abdomen.
A day later, she was informed that it was highly likely the cancer had returned. The next three months were spent having the ascites drained, along with various procedures and tests, before it was confirmed that she had a metastatic mucinous adenocarcinoma, meaning the cancer had spread.
She was referred to a consultant at James Cook University Hospital, in Middlesbrough, where she was told she would be treated with chemotherapy and immunotherapy – but it would be classed as palliative rather than curative.
“I went home in shock as I didn’t understand the difference between palliative and terminal and I’d been too stunned to ask for clarification,” she says.
The treatment started in June last year and everything appeared to be going well, with Emma considering herself “extremely lucky” to have continued to feel relatively well.
However, during discussions with her consultant about the longer-term treatment plan, it was made “very clear” that there was no expectation of getting rid of the cancer.
Emma asked her GP to refer her for a second opinion at the Royal Victoria Infirmary, in Newcastle. That was quickly arranged and the conclusion was that she was on the most appropriate treatment plan.
In desperation, she researched treatments in other parts of the UK, and asked about taking part in clinical trials, but no suitable options were found.
Instead, a friend read about the TACE treatment in Germany, highlighting the case of Welsh mum-of-six Laura Pearce, who was given six weeks to live with stage four breast cancer two years ago, and is now in remission.
Emma emailed Dr Vogl, received a swift response, and had her first treatment in May – funded by her Dad, Tony. That was followed by another treatment in June, and the latest today, with Emma using her savings for the treatment, travel and hotel costs.
- If you wish to support Emma with her costs, go to www.gofundme.com and search for Emma Bainbridge
“Dr Vogl doesn’t promise to get you into full remission but, knowing it’s possible and that he’s willing to try, is priceless," adds Emma.
"He also doesn’t tell you how many treatments you’ll need – he decides on the results of each individual case – but what have I got to lose?
“The nurses I've had at hospitals in the North East have been wonderful, but the NHS is broken, and has fallen so far behind Germany.
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“I just want others to know that they should never be afraid to seek a second opinion. You have to advocate for yourself, explore other options, and don’t give up hope.
“I'm fortunate to have a great support network, with Kevin, family and friends, and I try to stay positive.
"I don’t see it as fighting a disease, I see it as getting on with things and doing the best I can to live longer, and if I can help one person along the way, that’ll do for me.”
