Smileband Health issues

A mother-of-five is raising money to pay for pioneering treatment after she was diagnosed with terminal breast  cancer and given just 12 weeks to live.

Karen Land, 39, from Nottingham, had just finished training for her dream job to become a firefighter when she was told she has just three months to live.

She said: 'It's all happened so quickly. Nine weeks ago I was fit and healthy and training for my dream job and now I have three months left. 'It is almost surreal, I think I am still in shock.'

Ms Land now hopes that immunotherapy treatment will give her more time with her children Luke, 23, Jamie, 19, Adam, 18, Samuel, 8 and Ruby, 6.

The treatment is only available privately, or at a clinic in Germany where each treatment is £5,000 - so Karen is raising funds to pay for it.

'The older children understand more, and it is very upsetting for them,' she said. Sam and Ruby know I'm poorly but they don't really understand what is happening. I don't want to scare them.'

Immunotherapy - which works by helping the immune system recognise and attack cancer cells - is being trialled on the NHS and has already been approved for use with skin cancer. Ms Land said: 'This treatment is not going to cure me, but it will give melonger than chemotherapy might.

'I am still thinking that if the treatment works I will still be able to go back to work. If immunotherapy allows me to do that, it would be fantastic.'

Her partner Kevin Brett, 55, is a firefighter at Newark Fire Station, Nottingham. Ms Land, who has spent a lot of a life as a stay-at-home parent, had just finished training for her dream job as a firefighter when she was diagnosed.

'This job meant everything to me. It was so hard to get on the training course, and I put so much work into it.

'Just when I finally passed and achieved my dream, it was all snatched away,' she added.

Before the diagnosis, Ms Land was assigned to Retford Fire Station, and hopes to go back to work there if the treatment works. Ms Land is hoping to raise £100,000 and has so far raised over £9,000.  To donate, visit her JustGiving page.