
Taranaki great-grandmother loses eye after delays in surgery
Shirley Bielawski is 82 and is coming to terms with living with one eye. Her family say her eye might have been saved if she had been able to get surgery for a rare, aggressive form

Mum waits 18 months, in agony, for hip replacement
Every week, Jackie Elliott watches as her mum’s world grows smaller and smaller. The Kāpiti Coast district councillor’s 78-year-old mother, whose name has been withheld at her request, has been waiting for a hip replacement for

Surgery waiting list delays mean people waiting since last September only being seen now
When Fran Wilkinson phoned the hospital recently to check she was still getting a hip replacement, they said they were still working through patients put on the waiting list in September. The Marlborough resident believes she

Auckland husband and wife diagnosed with terminal lung cancer within months of each other
A husband and wife have been diagnosed with terminal lung cancer within five months of each other. Graham and Mery Brooke-Smith are trying to raise funds for treatment which they hope will allow them to see

Cancer survivor advocates for regular breast checks
It had been just 10 months since Lisa Rabbidge’s last mammogram when she noticed what would prove to be aggressive breast cancer. What followed was months of doctor’s appointments, surgery, chemotherapy, and oral medication, which she’ll

Christchurch academic surgeon who has led breakthroughs in bowel cancer research recognised
A Christchurch academic surgeon who has led breakthroughs in identifying potential causes of bowel cancer has been recognised with a Queen’s Birthday honour. Professor Frank Frizelle was the first professor of Colorectal Surgery in New Zealand