Tragic death of Leeds dad highlights cancer crisis during Covid - The Yorkshire Post says

For any family, losing a loved one in their twenties would be a cause of enormous devastation - but the pain is particularly pronounced when such a tragedy could have been avoided.
By YP Comment
Published 14th Dec 2020, 05:45 BST
Sherwin Hall (centre), a father-of-two who had to "beg" to get an MRI scan because of the Covid-19 crisis, has died of cancer, his family have revealed. Picture: Emily Green Photography/PA WireSherwin Hall (centre), a father-of-two who had to "beg" to get an MRI scan because of the Covid-19 crisis, has died of cancer, his family have revealed. Picture: Emily Green Photography/PA Wire
Sherwin Hall (centre), a father-of-two who had to "beg" to get an MRI scan because of the Covid-19 crisis, has died of cancer, his family have revealed. Picture: Emily Green Photography/PA Wire

This is the heartbreaking position facing the family of 27-year-old father-of-two Sherwin Hall, from Leeds, who has died from cancer after his pleas to have an MRI scan in March went unheeded for months as the unfolding Covid crisis took up the attention and resources of the NHS. His widow, LaTroya Hall, said she is devastated to have lost the love of her life and believes if his cancer had been found earlier, it is likely he would still be here today.

She is bravely sharing their story in the hope of preventing other families facing similar tragedies. Alarmingly, cancer charity MacMillan says the backlog of cancer patients from the first lockdown is 50,000 while there might be double the number of patients from the second lockdown.

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An international study has suggested that for every four-week delay in treatment there is up to a 13 per cent reduction in survival which could lead to the death of tens of thousands of cancer patients who could have survived under normal circumstances.

The rising numbers of Covid cases across the nation at the moment is clearly a matter of huge concern and no one doubts the scale of the challenge facing the NHS at the moment. But equally, another public health emergency is beginning to unfold in parallel as the diagnoses of illnesses that have been missed as a result of the pandemic lead to deaths that could have been prevented.

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Related topics:LeedsYorkshire PostNHSYorkshire

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