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.
32-year-old Bianca Perea is the first person in the UK to have a liver transplant for advanced bowel cancer.
The transplant, along with her previous treatment – targeted therapy, chemotherapy and bowel surgery – means she is now cancer free.
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.
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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.
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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.
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Bianca Perea, one of our patients, is the first person in the UK to have a liver transplant for advanced bowel cancer. She's now cancer free.
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.
“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
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Subjects for first vocational equivalent to A-Levels revealed ahead of introduction next year
Emily Sergeant
The subjects for the first vocational equivalent to A-Levels have been revealed ahead of their introduction into the curriculum next year.
Claiming that too many have been ‘held back’ by a system that didn’t ‘value every route to success’, the Government has now announced that young people will be able to take the very first V-Levels in subjects like education, finance, and digital in 2027, as part of landmark reforms to close the skills gap and help them secure well-paid jobs.
V-Levels are described as being ‘transformational’ new qualifications where learning is designed around real jobs and the skills that employers actually need.
They combine study and real‑world work experience to achieve the final outcome.
As mentioned, the new qualifications will be introduced next year for 16‑year‑olds, providing a year of study before progressing to V-Levels, T-Levels or A-Levels – with the initial subjects being Education and Early Years, and Digital.
The first subjects for the vocational equivalent to A-Levels have been revealed / Credit: EasyPeasyAI | JESHOOTS (via Unsplash)
A separate two‑year, employment‑focused route will also be available for those aiming to move straight into work or an apprenticeship after education.
Students who want to specialise in technical, sector-focused studies will also have more options, as T-Levels will soon be expanded to include subjects such as Sports, Fitness and Exercise Science, and Care Services.
These further changes to T-Levels will refine content and assessment, and allow providers more scope to tailor industry placements, to ensure that more young people can access them.
“Our bold reforms will end the snobbery in post-16 education, supporting young people with real choice and real opportunity to build secure, future‑proof careers,” commented Education Secretary, Bridget Phillipson, as the V-Level subjects were announced.
“Not only that, but it will give parents much-needed confidence in a system that values every route to success, as we continuing driving forward our mission to ensure two‑thirds of young people are in education, training, or apprenticeships by 25.”
Bill Watkin, Chief Executive of the Sixth Form Colleges Association, added: “We are pleased that a third qualification pathway will sit alongside A levels and T levels in the future.
“The changes announced to T levels today are also very welcome and should make it easier for more young people to study a T level and for schools and colleges to offer them.”
Featured Image – The Labour Party (via Flickr)
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Salford man jailed after pointing loaded gun at police and members of public while on the run
Emily Sergeant
A man from Salford has been jailed for more than a decade after he pointed a loaded gun at police officers and members of the public while he was on the run.
Jay Conway, of Leicester Walk in Salford, appeared at Manchester Crown Court last week (6 March 2026) where he pleaded guilty to possession of a firearm, possession of a firearm without a licence, possession of a firearm with intent to endanger life, and assault of an emergency worker, as well as also pleading guilty to possession with intent to supply class A and class B drugs.
His sentencing comes after officers from Greater Manchester Police‘s (GMP) Salford Challenger team were patrolling Albert Park in plain clothes on Tuesday 20 May 2025.
They spotted a man riding an e-bike and wearing a balaclava, and attempted to detain him there and then, but despite their best efforts, he fled the area, brandishing what officers believed to be a pistol in the process.
The suspect – which was later identified as Conway – stole a bike and cycled on to Great Clowes Street, where a neighbourhood officer heading towards the incident attempted to detain him but he resisted. The officer deployed his Taser but he drew the pistol for a second time, pointing it at police and also at a member of the public.
Conway then dropped the firearm – which police later confirmed as a viable, loaded pistol – and a mobile phone, and fled for a second time.
Thanks to a ‘fast-paced and thorough’ investigation by specialist GMP teams, involving forensic analysis of the phone and CCTV which identified Conway as the suspect, he was arrested by armed officers the following day in Whalley Range.
“Nobody – a police officer or a member of the public – should be confronted by a gun,” said Detective Superintendent Simon Moyles, following Conway’s sentencing.
“These were frightening incidents and Conway is clearly a dangerous individual who is rightly serving a prison sentence. We need to commend and recognise our officers who showed immense bravery in trying to stop Conway.
“Guns have no place on our streets and the work we are doing in Salford, and across Greater Manchester, in relation to firearms incidents continues.
“If you know anyone who is using, or possesses, an illegal firearm, we urge you to get in touch with us as, for each firearm we recover, that’s potentially a life saved.”
Emily Sergeant -
7th January 2025 
