Terminally ill cancer patient forced to sleep on the floor in A&E due to a lack of beds [Video]

12:39 EDT 28 Jun 2024, updated 12:49 EDT 28 Jun 2024

Shadow Health Secretary Wes Streeting has branded the crisis engulfing NHS hospitals ‘a disgrace’ after it emerged a terminally ill cancer patient was forced to sleep on the floor of A&E as no beds were available. 

Madeleine Butcher had a hysterectomy 18 months ago after being diagnosed with ovarian cancer in 2022.

The 62-year-old from Blackpool had since been diagnosed with terminal cancer and has visited A&E on several occasions due to sepsis following her chemotherapy treatment. 

Her husband John, 61, told The Blackpool Gazette in previous incidents she has been in hospital for 10 days on antibiotics, an IV and fluids to control the infection.

But this time when he took Mrs Butcher to Blackpool Victoria Hospital at around 3am on Sunday he was ‘horrified’.