Father diagnosed with terminal cancer travels to Turkey for potentially lifesaving operation
A man who diagnosed with terminal cancer just two weeks after getting married will today have an operation he hopes can save his life.
Staffordshire man Florian Tushi travelled to Turkey yesterday and will have a potentially lifesaving operation today.
Florian, 35, finally married Sarah Maybin in May this year, having postponed the wedding twice due to the coronavirus pandemic.
But the happy couple's joy was shortlived as within a fortnight of the wedding Florian was told he had terminal stomach cancer.
Sarah's twin sister Emily-Jane has launched a crowd-funding appeal to raise funds for the £50,000 operation, with more than £30,000 being raised in just four days.
The couple, who have daughters Isabella, four, and Olivia who is nine months old, initially put Florian's crushing stomach pains and weight loss down to the stress of planning the wedding during the pandemic.
But they were delivered the devastating news that Florian, who works as a recruitment consultant, had stage four cancer.
Experts at the Royal Stoke University Hospital told them all they could provide was chemotherapy and palliative care.
But Florian travelled to Turkey for a second opinion, and within 48 hours was told by a specialist that it would be possible to cure him by removing his stomach.
"They are confident it will cure him," she said.
"At 35 years old he has his whole life ahead of him with his beautiful wife and two gorgeous daughters.
“He will never be the same again because it’s a major surgery but I can’t put into words how important this is. My sister could grow old with her husband and my nieces get to grow up with their dad, everyone deserves that."
The couple, from Silverdale, near Newcastle-under-Lyme, had been together for 10 years and got engaged five years ago.
Emily-Jane said she had been thrilled by the response and thanked people who had contributed to the fund.
"You're all amazing and what you’ve done is just out of this world! Thank you for giving my nieces a chance to have their dad and my sister to have the wedding bliss she deserves."
Dr Matthew Lewis, medical director at University Hospital North Midlands, said patient confidentiality rules meant he could not comment on specific cases.
"Our clinical teams follow national guidance and as an NHS organisation we are committed to doing the best for patients by following the established and clinically evidenced treatments," he said.
*To donate to the appeal see the website here
