A FORMER county councillor has spoken about how his wife saved his life after calling for a biopsy.

Peter Tomlinson, 81, from Ombersley, was diagnosed with prostate cancer in 2009 after his wife Ali Tomlinson, who was a doctor, urged medics to test for the illness.

It comes as Cancer Research UK calls for 'bold action' to tackle 'worrying' rise in deaths and new diagnoses by 2029.

“We went into the consultant room a happily married couple who had just retired, and sadly our world was shattered by the news ‘You have cancer’,” Mr Tomlinson said.

After having hormone therapy and radiotherapy, Mr Tomlinson said he came out “relatively unscathed”, but stressed this was down to his wife.

Read more: Worcestershire Royal Hospital A&E waiting room closed

Read more: 75% of homecare providers in Worcester have out of date rating

He said: “I came out of that relatively unscathed but interestingly only because my wife called for the biopsy.

“Did she have an instinct? Because she saved my life basically. And I couldn’t do the same for her sadly.”

Mrs Tomlinson was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer after having some discomfort in her abdominal region in 2013.

The couple were forced to drive to another hospital for her to have surgery within weeks of the diagnosis after being told their local centre of excellence had a three-month waiting list.

After her recovery, Mrs Tomlinson was put on medication which mimicked how the pancreas works.

However, in 2019, while on holiday in Madeira, her symptoms started again.

“I just remember the amount of late nights we had that week because she knew, and I knew, there would be no operation,” Mr Tomlinson said.

“She was very cheerful, we pretended that life was going to go on. We lived each day how we would like to live each day. We lived a life as normal as possible.”

Mrs Tomlinson died aged 72 in the autumn of 2020.

“Someone said to me grief is like a wave in the sea. The sea is calm and suddenly out of nowhere comes a wave of grief. And you learn eventually how to surf it and not go under it.”

Analysis by Cancer Research suggests there will be about 912,000 deaths from all cancers combined in the UK by the end of the Labour Government’s first parliamentary term in 2029.

During the same period, the charity estimates there will also be around 2.2 million new cancer diagnoses, a hike of 22 per cent.

Mr Tomlinson said: “I worry that the health service is not geared up to deal with cancer.

“My cancer was caught early – not by my GP, not by a consultant, but by my wife.

“Early diagnosis is so important – the earlier you find it, the better the outcome.

“GPs are under such pressure and I know that symptoms of early cancer can be difficult to spot, but then you’ve got the waiting time before the test. Then you’ve got to wait for the results of the test.

“Has anyone tried to understand how that person feels waiting for something that is going to determine the course of the rest of their life? It is the most horrible, horrible feeling.

“The Government needs to understand the emotional impact of cancer on the cancer patient."