Bobby Power's family have recalled their heartache at watching cancer kill the popular dad-of-three without 'any treatment whatsoever'. The former United youth footballer from north Manchester, who starred in There's Only One Jimmy Grimble, died aged 40 after battling pancreatic cancer.
Bobby had built a huge following on social media as an 'inspirational' personal trainer and mountain climber who shared motivational messages to support others. But in the months before his death, Bobby's family say they 'begged' for help as they watched him suffer.
He passed out twice when he first attended North Manchester General Hospital (NMGH), then a third time after being seen to, his mum Estrella Barry said. He had a CT scan and was told he had pancreatic cancer last August.
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However, Bobby was told he would need further tests to confirm which type of pancreatic cancer he had before receiving treatment. Bobby's family say he had seven biopsies but after all were inconclusive, he was told the tumour was benign and he did not have cancer after all.
Kaitlyn Eadsforth, Bobby's middle daughter, told the Manchester Evening News: "We've got videos he made when he said he'd been told he hadn't got cancer. It's really sad."
Estrella added: "At one point a doctor came up to him and said it's a benign tumour. Then he went back to the radiology department.
"He said he should be feeling elated, be he feels really down and tired. They said 'you aren't out of the woods, from a radiology perspective you have got pancreatic cancer, you've definitely got it'."
Bobby and his family faced an ongoing battle for the months that followed. He was transferred from NMGH to Manchester Royal Infirmary (MRI).
But his family say that because the biopsies had been inconclusive, Bobby was told he could not start treatment. "He wasn't allowed any treatment whatsoever," said Estrella.
"They said that once he had the diagnosis, they would throw everything at it. I said 'can't you just get it surgically?'. They said no one would do that."
Kaitlyn added: "We begged them, we begged the doctors, we said 'please just give him some chance to fight it'. They said there was nothing they could do."
Eventually it was agreed that Bobby could have surgery around a month before he died, on February 29, his family say. But days after the decision, Bobby began to suffer with ascites - where his blood vessels were leaking into his abdomen - and he was told he could not have the surgery.
"I said 'why didn't you do it months ago?'," Estrella said. "They said 'no one would have done it at that time' and 'hindsight is a great thing'."
Bobby's family watched on as he 'suffered with pain' and 'didn't stand a chance' against his aggressive pancreatic cancer - with his muscles having wasted away. "They just messed it up so badly for him," said Estrella.
"He never had a Macmillan nurse, he never went to Christies, he had nothing. He had no cancer support. The best care he received was when he came home, from the district nurses, and when he went into Dr Kershaw's Hospice."
Estrella told the M.E.N. that following her son's death, NHS bosses in Manchester were looking at the rules regarding surgery for pancreatic cancer. Manchester University NHS Foundation Trust (MFT), which runs both NMGH and MRI, says the case is being looked at by its Patient Advice and Liaison Service.
Bobby died at Dr Kershaw's Hospice, in Oldham, a fortnight after getting married there to Jemma Power-Bliss. He leaves behind daughters Loren, 20, Kaitlyn, 19, and Heidi, 12.
"He spent the rest of his life trying to find a cure," added Estrella. "He wanted to live for his girls. He did everything he could."
A spokesperson for MFT said: "We would like to offer our sincere condolences to Bobby's family at this difficult time. Our Patient Advice and Liaison Service team are looking into the concerns raised by his family."
Bobby's friend, Leigh Sarsfield, is raising funds for Dr Kershaw's Hospice by running a 100-mile ultra-marathon with 40 laps of Dovestone Reservoir. Find out more on his GoFundMe page here.
