{"id":378517,"date":"2026-01-19T14:57:12","date_gmt":"2026-01-19T14:57:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/378517\/"},"modified":"2026-01-19T14:57:12","modified_gmt":"2026-01-19T14:57:12","slug":"scots-mum-with-terminal-cancer-in-last-chance-bid-for-treatment-abroad-to-see-kids-grow-up","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/378517\/","title":{"rendered":"Scots mum with terminal cancer in last chance bid for treatment abroad to see kids grow up"},"content":{"rendered":"

Michelle Gemmell, 39, from Bellshill, said she is facing “life or death” after being told by NHS doctors that there is nothing more they can do for her.\"Michelle<\/p>\n

Michelle was first diagnosed with breast cancer in 2021(Image: https:\/\/www.gofundme.com\/f\/life-saving-treatment-for-michelle)<\/p>\n

A Scots mum with terminal cancer <\/a>is desperately trying to raise money to receive treatment abroad so she can live longer for her three young children.<\/p>\n

Michelle Gemmell, 39, from Bellshill<\/a>, North Lanarkshire, has been told there is no further treatment available for her in the UK, but a procedure overseas could buy her precious few months with her beloved daughters.<\/p>\n

Michelle Gemmell, wife to Darren and mum to Zara, 11, Paige, nine, and Sophia, six, was first diagnosed with breast cancer in 2021. She underwent chemotherapy<\/a>, surgery, and radiotherapy, and in January 2023, was given the all clear.<\/p>\n

But in June 2024, after months of pain, breathlessness and sleepless nights, Michelle was taken to A&E where scans showed the cancer was back – this time as aggressive, triple-negative secondary breast cancer that had spread.<\/p>\n

Michelle has endured countless treatments since. One chemotherapy treatment caused a severe allergic reaction while another made the cancer spread faster. The cancer is now in her lungs, liver, spine, lymph nodes and rib cage.<\/p>\n

\"Michelle<\/p>\n

Michelle Gemmell has been described as a “devoted wife who does everything for her three girls”(Image: @michellebelle100 \/ tiktok)<\/p>\n

Earlier this month, Michelle’s cancer progressed even further and she was told the NHS had no more treatment options available for her. However, Michelle found a treatment <\/a>in Germany called TACE (Transarterial Chemoembolization) which targets the tumours directly and has helped others in similar situations.<\/p>\n

The nursery teacher has now launched a fundraiser to receive the “life-saving” treatment which isn’t available on the NHS. The total raised is currently sitting at nearly \u00a340k of its \u00a345k target.<\/p>\n

Speaking on her TikTok <\/a>page, Michelle told her 4k followers: “I’ve been told from the NHS that the chemotherapy’s not working and there’s nothing more they can do for me but I’m not ready to stop fighting.<\/p>\n

“I’ve got fire in my belly and I’ve got three wee girls and I’m not ready to leave them.<\/p>\n

“I don’t like asking for money and I’ve never been a fan of [GoFundMe] but I now understand why people do it because now I’m at that point where I’m desperate. I’m going to be setting up a GoFundMe page…<\/p>\n

\"Michelle<\/p>\n

In January 2026, what looked like a chest infection turned out to be further progression of the cancer(Image: https:\/\/www.gofundme.com\/f\/life-saving-treatment-for-michelle)<\/p>\n

“We’ve worked out that we think I’ll need around \u00a350,000 which covers transport, hotel, and the amount of treatments I’m going to need… I need an army behind me and help to prolong my life because I can’t picture myself not here and it’s really scary. I don’t know what happens to you and I just want to be here with my family.”<\/p>\n

She added: “If this treatment abroad helps me to give me another few years then I am going to do everything in my power to be here… this is life or death for me now.”<\/p>\n

According to the fundraising page, each trip to Frankfurt – where the treatment centre is located – costs around \u00a35,000, covering the procedure, travel and accommodation for two. Michelle needs up to 10 sessions.<\/p>\n

The GoFundMe added: “This isn’t about luxury or comfort. It\u2019s about time.<\/p>\n

“Time for Michelle to see Zara start high school. Time to stand on the side-lines for Paige\u2019s dance exhibitions. Time to hold Sophia a little longer at bedtime. Time for Darren to have more moments with the woman he loves.”<\/p>\n

To donate to the GoFundMe, please click here<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Michelle Gemmell, 39, from Bellshill, said she is facing “life or death” after being told by NHS doctors…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":378518,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[10],"tags":[143923,847,59,102,53489,56,54,55],"class_list":["post-378517","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-health","tag-bellshill","tag-cancer","tag-gb","tag-health","tag-lanarkshire","tag-uk","tag-united-kingdom","tag-unitedkingdom"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/378517","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=378517"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/378517\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/378518"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=378517"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=378517"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=378517"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}