Both have cancer. But why can’t one get the best care?

Observer sports writer Bill Elliott was diagnosed with prostate cancer in April. Within an hour, his wife Val was told she had breast cancer. Now they have had to come to terms with the stark fact that her treatment has 10 times as much funding as his. Health Editor Jo Revill examines the human cost of NHS inequalities.

Brightest light in universe to examine lung cancer cells

New Year 2007 will see the arrival of a light brighter than anything in the known universe at a field in Oxfordshire. But this is no Spielbergesque alien visitation. A £250m machine will be switched on, which is designed to help scientists peer in more detail than ever before at the fine structure of cells.

What is my life worth?

Surgery. Radiotherapy. Herceptin injections. Skin grafts. Consultations. In the latest of a series of articles Dina Rabinovitch finds comfort in adding up the cost of her treatment for cancer.