News

Manchester woman now cancer free after groundbreaking UK-first transplant

Such an incredible story.

Emily Sergeant Emily Sergeant - 7th January 2025

A young woman from Manchester who was told she only had a short time to live is now cancer free after a UK-first transplant.

Bianca Perea, a 32-year-old trainee lawyer who lives in Wigan, was diagnosed with stage 4 bowel cancer – which is the most advanced kind – back in November 2021 when she was just 29, after only feeling a bit constipated and bloated, but otherwise having no other major symptoms.

After she was referred to her local hospital to have emergency bloods and a stool sample taken, followed by a colonoscopy and a biopsy, these investigations sadly revealed that she had bowel cancer, which had spread to all eight segments of her liver.

According to Cancer Research, only one in 10 people with advanced bowel cancer will survive for five years or more after their diagnosis.

But after becoming a patient at The Christie NHS Foundation Trust, a specialist cancer centre in Manchester, Bianca is now miraculously cancer free thanks to becoming the first person in the UK to have a liver transplant for advanced bowel cancer, along with other previous treatments included targeted therapy, chemotherapy, and surgery.

Bianca was referred to The Christie’s local treatment centre in Wigan in early December 2021 where she had 37 rounds of a targeted drug called panitumumab, and chemotherapy over two and a half years.

According to The Christie, she had an “excellent response” to the treatment, with the tumour shrinking enough so that she could have an operation to remove the part of the bowel where it was.

A Manchester woman is now cancer free after a groundbreaking UK-first transplant / Credit: The Christie NHS

However scans showed she still had tumours in her liver which couldn’t be operated on, and so she was then referred to Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust as she was found to be a suitable candidate for a transplant.

Before being added to the transplant list, Bianca had to be doing well on treatment for two years, and she hit this milestone in December 2023.

She was subsequently added to the list in February 2024, and had her operation this past summer.

Despite all the odds, the surgery was successful, meaning she is now cancer free and the teams at Leeds and The Christie are “hopeful” that the cancer won’t return too.

“Within four weeks of going under the knife, I was able to drive and walk the family dogs, it was really quite incredible,” Bianca said.

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“To go from being told I’d only have a short time to live to now being cancer free is the greatest gift. I’ve been given a second chance at life and I’m going to grab it with both hands. I am so grateful to the family who agreed to donate their loved one’s liver.”

Featured Image – The Christie NHS

News

Florence + The Machine announce massive Manchester gig on new tour

Daisy Jackson Daisy Jackson Florence and the Machine have announced a UK tour with a Manchester date. Credit: Autumn De Wilde

Florence + The Machine are heading back out on a huge arena tour, with a massive gig here in Manchester.

Florence Welch has announced the UK and European tour dates in support of her sixth studio album, Everybody Scream.

As well as a show at the Co-op Live in Manchester, Florence + The Machine will perform in Sheffield, London and Liverpool, along with several other UK cities.

She’ll be joined by Paris Paloma as support across all 18 dates.

Last week, Florence released the album’s title track, ahead of the album’s release on 31 October. She’s worked for two years on this new music, calling on collaborators including Mark Bowen of IDLES, Aaron Dessner and Mitski.

She has said that this new album explores womanhood, partnership, aging and dying, inspired by her recovery from lifesaving surgery on the Dance Fever Tour.

Big hits of Florence + The Machine’s discography include You’ve Got The Love, Shake It Out, and Spectrum (Say My Name), and she’s collaborated with the likes of Taylor Swift, The Rolling Stones, and Lady Gaga.

She’s famed for her high-energy, ethereal stage presence which has seen her sell out arenas for years.

Florence + The Machine will be back in Manchester in February 2026, performing at the Co-op Live on 20 February.

Tickets go on sale on Friday 5 September 2025 at 10am HERE.

There are also packages available with Seat Unique HERE.

EVERYBODY SCREAM UK + EU TOUR 2026

  • 6 February – Belfast – SSE Arena
  • 8 February – Birmingham – bp pulse Live
  • 9 February – Glasgow – OVO Hydro
  • 11 February – Newcastle – Utilita Arena
  • 13 February – Liverpool – M&S Bank Arena
  • 14 February – Sheffield – Utilita Arena
  • 16 February – London – The O2
  • 17 February – London – The O2
  • 20 February – Manchester – Co-op Live
  • 22 February – Paris – Accor Arena
  • 23 February – Antwerp – Sportpaleis
  • 25 February – Amsterdam – Ziggo Dome
  • 26 February – Cologne – Lanxess Arena
  • 2 March – Vienna – Stadthalle
  • 4 March – Munich – Olympiahalle
  • 5 March – Prague – 02 Arena
  • 7 March – Krakow – Tauron Arena
  • 9 March – Berlin – Uber Arena

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Featured image: Autumn De Wilde

News

New ‘postboxes of the future’ are being rolled out across the UK

Danny Jones Danny Jones Royal Mail installing new futuristic postboxes

The Royal Mail is starting to roll out its line of so-called “postboxes of the future” across the UK this year, including right here in Greater Manchester.

It has been dubbed the most important and noticeable transformation to the classic British postbox in its entire 175-year history.

The national postal service teased the modern-day upgrade earlier this year, but the revolutionary new upgrade was officially announced this week, with Royal Mail ushering in a new era of digitally-driven units that should make many lives a lot easier – at least in theory.

Although they might look pretty identical to the iconic red boxes since before the turn of the 19th century have used up and down the country, there are marked differences between the new and the old ones.

new solar post boxes great britain
Credit: Royal Mail

The biggest change made to the Royal Mail’s soon-to-be standard design is a digitally activated drop-down drawer, which will be able to fit parcels as big as a shoebox, hopefully saving us Brits on a fair few trips to the post office.

You will be able to scan a barcode via the updated Royal Mail app to activate the drawer for larger items; meanwhile, there will be a separate slot for letters and smaller packages.

Additionally, the new range of high-tech postboxes will also be solar-powered, helping the public limited company chase its ‘green’ targets.

Now owned by parent firm International Distribution Services (IDS) – who also oversee Parcelforce Worldwide – following the UK government’s approval of its historic sale to Czech billionaire Daniel Křetínský at the end of 2024, the group as a whole is undergoing a significant overhaul.

Britain’s new solar postboxes were first trialled back in April in four towns located throughout the Hertfordshire region: Letchworth Garden City, Ware and Hertford. A fifth was later installed in Fowlmere, Cambridgeshire, too.

Despite being quickly considered a success on the whole, the initial design featured an entirely black top, with polls of civilians and Royal Mail themselves agreeing that keeping them red all over was more in keeping with the brand.

It’s like the old school phone box, isn’t it? We can’t picture it any other way.

Speaking in a statement, the Royal Mail‘s managing director of ‘out-of-home and commercial excellence’, Jack Clarkson, said: “We are all sending and returning more parcels than ever before.

“This trend will only continue as online shopping shows no signs of slowing, particularly with the boom of second-hand marketplaces. There are 115,000 postboxes in the UK located within half a mile of 98% of addresses, making them by far the most convenient network of parcel drop-off points in the UK.

“Our message is clear – if you have a Royal Mail label on your parcel, and it fits, put it in a postbox and we’ll do the rest.”

The new generation postboxes are now being made permanent in the same locations, with Edinburgh, Nottingham, Sheffield and Manchester next.

Keep your eyes peeled on the streets as they’ll soon be making a debut in your area.

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Featured Images – Royal Mail (publicity pictures)

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