Cystic Fibrosis Woman Dies After Transplant

The father of a woman born with cystic fibrosis who died after being given a lung transplant from a smoker is calling for hospitals to tell patients about a donor's health history.

Jennifer Wederell, 27, died of cancer on August 24 at her home in Hawkwell, Essex, 16 months after being given the transplant at Harefield Hospital in London.

She was not told at the time of the transplant that the middle-aged donor had been a smoker.

Now Jennifer's father, Colin Grannell, says people facing organ transplants should be told of any adverse history from the donor that might affect a successful transplant.

He says he does not think his daughter would have agreed to the transplant if she had known the full facts.

The hospital says it is sorry she was not given the choice.

Jennifer, who  was on oxygen for 24 hours a day by her mid-20s, had been on the waiting list for a lung transplant for 18 months when she was told there was a match in April 2011.

She received the transplant and married her long-term boyfriend, David, that same year.

But by February of this year, less than a year after the operation, Mrs Wederell had been diagnosed with cancer, with the terrible news that it had spread.

"The shock immediately turned to anger in so far as all the risks were explained in the hour before her transplant and not once was the fact that a smoker's lungs would be used mentioned," Mr Grannell told the Daily Mail.

"She was dying a death that was meant for someone else."

Mr Grannell has set up a Facebook site, Jennifer's Choice, to encourage non-smokers to sign up to the organ donor register.

The Royal Brompton Hospital Trust told Sky News: "The Trust has reiterated its sincere condolences to the family and loved ones of Jennifer Wederell for their very sad loss.

"It is very rare for patients to specify that they do not wish to be considered for clinically healthy lungs from smokers.

"This is because the risks are much higher if patients decline donor lungs from a former smoker, and decide to wait for another set of organs which are both a match for them and from a non-smoker, to become available.

"However we recognise that Jennifer should have been given the opportunity to make this choice. We have apologised sincerely for this oversight.

"Regrettably, the number of lungs available for transplantation would fall by 40% if there was a policy of refusing those which have come from a smoker; waiting lists would increase and many more patients would die without a transplant."

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Jamie And Nigella Roasted In Nutrition Study

Recipes by TV chefs including Jamie Oliver and Nigella Lawson are often "less healthy" than ready meals and their programmes should be subjected to a 9pm watershed, a study says.

It found that meals randomly selected from their books contained "significantly more" fat and saturated fat and less fibre per portion than supermarket ready meals.

Neither the ready meals nor the recipes complied with all of the nutritional recommendations from the World Health Organisation (WHO).

The research was carried out by a team from NHS Tees and Newcastle University, which based it on the top five TV chef recipe books on amazon.com in December 2010.

These were 30 Minute Meals and Ministry Of Food by Jamie Oliver, Baking Made Easy by Lorraine Pascale, Nigella Lawson's Kitchen and River Cottage Everyday by Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall.

They compared the nutritional content of 100 recipes randomly selected from the books to 100 own-brand ready meals from Tesco, Asda and Sainsbury's.

Nigella Lawson has a huge following

The study, published in the Christmas edition of the British Medical Journal on bmj.com, found that no recipe or ready meal met all of the WHO nutrient intake goals for preventing diet-related diseases.

The TV chef's recipes were also more likely to achieve red traffic light labels than the ready meals.

"Meals based on television chef recipes were less healthy than ready meals," the authors wrote.

"Significantly fewer were within the recommended ranges for fibre density and percentage of energy derived from carbohydrate and fat, and per portion they contained significantly more energy, protein, fat and saturated fat, and significantly less fibre.

"The recipes were also more likely to achieve red traffic light labels according to the criteria of the UK Food Standards Agency (FSA).

"Despite reported efforts from industry to reduce the salt content of meals, only 4% of the ready meals met the WHO recommendation."

Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall is highly respected

The authors suggest that TV chefs who create unhealthy meals should be subjected to a 9pm watershed.

They also state that recipe books should contain more nutritional guidance, such as those portrayed on the front of many food products.

A spokesman for Jamie Oliver said: "We welcome any research which raises debate on these issues and in fact Jamie's most recent book, 15 Minute Meals, does contain calorie content and nutritional information per serving for every dish.

"We will soon also be re-launching the Jamie Oliver website with nutritional information on the recipes. However, we would regard the key issue to be food education so that people are aware of which foods are for every day and which are treats to be enjoyed occasionally."

A spokesman for Tesco said: "We have been cutting levels of salt, sugar and saturated fat across our ranges since 2005 and none of our own-brand products contain artificial trans fats or artificial colours or flavours."

A Sainsbury's spokeswoman added: "We continue to reduce salt, saturated fat, fat and sugar in our own-brand products and take the lead on providing clear nutritional information, enabling our customers to make informed choices."

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Trains Resume Service On East Coast Line

Trains have resumed some service on the East Coast Main Line after overhead wire problems caused chaos for travellers.

East Coast said a half-hourly service was now operating from London King's Cross and other services would "progressively resume throughout the day".

The company had initially hoped that a problem with overhead wiring between Stevenage and Hitchin would be sorted by 7am today.

But another incident on the line early this morning closed all four lines through Hitchin, causing mass cancellations and delays.

Services into and out of King's Cross were stopped after the damage on the line that links London with Edinburgh.

It meant that East Coast, Grand Central and First Hull Trains were forced to start and terminate at Peterborough.

First Capital Connect have been running shuttle train services between Letchworth Garden City and Cambridge, Biggleswade and Peterborough, and Welwyn Garden City and London Kings Cross.

Replacement buses have been running between Stevenage and Luton and Hertford North, and between Letchworth and Biggleswade and Welwyn Garden City.

"We apologise to passengers for the continued disruption to East Coast services this morning," East Coast said.

"Trains are now starting to move again through the affected area near Hitchin. A half-hourly East Coast service is now operating from London King's Cross and we expect services to progressively resume throughout the day.

"Earlier this morning, another train operator's service joining the main line at Hitchin was involved in an incident which led to reports of new overhead power line damage, following damage yesterday afternoon.

"Network Rail - which is responsible for track, signals and overhead lines - tell us that further damage to the overhead power lines was found at just before 07.00 this morning.

"In the meantime we have made arrangements for passengers to travel via alternative routes. Road replacement services are operating between Peterborough and Bedford; and we have been operating a shuttle service between Peterborough and Cambridge using a diesel train.

"All ticket restrictions have been lifted and East Coast tickets are being accepted by other operators on alternative routes."

East Coast advised passengers to turn to Twitter for more information about the disruption, using hashtag #Hitchin.

Passengers stuck on their way into London used Twitter to air their frustrations.

‏@phildoug wrote: "#hitchen all lines 4 lines into London closed on EC train stuck at St Neots, they may turn it round!"

@noelmc66 said: "Travelling on #eastcoast today? Forget it. Peterborough Stn resembling a (well dressed) refugee camp #chaos."

Another, @JRE111S, wrote: "Dear Santa - this year could I have some new overhead cables for the #Hitchin line? some boys on your naughty list seem to have stolen them!"

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Women Held Over £1m Security Van Robbery

Two women have been arrested in connection with a £1m raid on a security van almost 20 years ago.

One of the women is the partner of Eddie Maher, who is accused of carrying out the robbery in Felixstowe in 1993. The other is his sister.

Deborah Brett, 47, and Margaret Francis, 64, were detained by police in Eastbourne on suspicion of conspiracy to steal and assisting an offender.

File photo of Eddie Maher

Maher, known as 'Fast Eddie', denies being involved in the raid, which happened outside Lloyds Bank in Hamilton Road, Felixstowe.

A statement from Suffolk Police said: "Two women have been arrested this morning, Tuesday 18 December in connection with the investigation into a security van theft outside Lloyds Bank, Hamilton Road, Felixstowe in 1993.

"The 47-year-old and 64-year-old women, both from Eastbourne in East Sussex have been arrested on suspicion of conspiracy to steal and assisting an offender.

"The women were arrested by Suffolk Police officers in Eastbourne and are currently being held in custody at Eastbourne custody investigation suite."

Maher, 55, who vanished after the robbery, was extradited from the US in July after being arrested in Ozark, Missouri, in February.

Formerly of South Woodham Ferrers, Essex, he is due to go on trial at Ipswich Crown Court in March.

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Cancer Boy Neon Roberts' Mum Blocks Surgery

The mother of a seven-year-old boy who is at the centre of a legal battle over whether he should have radiation treatment for cancer is also opposed to any further surgery on his brain tumour, a court has heard.

A High Court judge had been due to rule on whether Neon Roberts should have the radiotherapy against the wishes of his mother, Sally, at a hearing on December 8, but proceedings were adjourned after the tumour was found.

Ms Roberts' lawyer told the court on Tuesday that the tumour was part of the original one left behind after the initial operation.

Although this means there is a better prognosis for its removal, the lawyer said the 37-year-old was against any further surgery being carried out.

Ms Roberts said: "I feel I need more expert opinion on it before proceeding."

A doctor treating Neon said a scan showed that the surgery needed to be carried out "urgently" on the "residual tumour".

He said the tumour could spread without surgery and it was "highly likely" that Neon would die within a "relatively short period" without further treatment.

The judge will now have to rule on whether the surgery should go ahead and the issue of the radiotherapy put aside.

Ms Roberts, 37, a New Zealander who lives in Brighton, East Sussex, had initially refused the radiotherapy saying that after research she feared radiotherapy would a "damaging effect" on Neon's future.

The boy's father Ben, who lives in London and is separated from Ms Roberts, agreed to the radiotherapy but was "apprehensive", the court heard.

Doctors said Neon might die within months without radiotherapy treatment.

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Lord McAlpine Settles Claims With BBC And ITV

Lord McAlpine, who was wrongly implicated in child sex abuse allegations, has settled his libel actions against the BBC and ITV for £310,000.

The former Tory Party treasurer was not at London's High Court to hear their solicitors apologise unreservedly for the damage and distress caused.

His lawyers confirmed the agreements involved the payment of £185,000 damages by the BBC and £125,000 from ITV, together with very substantial costs.

The peer's counsel, Edward Garnier QC, told Mr Justice Tugendhat the action followed a Newsnight broadcast in November.

The programme focused on the alleged sexual abuse of boys at the Bryn Estyn children's home in Wales in the 1970s and 1980s.

Two victims claimed they suffered abuse "at the hands of a leading Conservative politician from the Thatcher years".

The item did not name Lord McAlpine, but the programme-makers intended him to be the target of the allegations, he added.

"In short, Newsnight made the most serious of defamatory allegations about Lord McAlpine, tarring him as a paedophile who was guilty of sexually abusing vulnerable young boys living in care," he said.

Sir Edward said that six days after the Newsnight broadcast, ITV's This Morning included an interview with Prime Minister David Cameron.

During the interview presenter Phillip Schofield, referred to the Bryn Estyn scandal.

Schofield then passed Mr Cameron a card containing a list of names which were continually associated with the allegations that he said he had found on the internet.

Counsel said ITV and Schofield accepted that Lord McAlpine's name appeared on the list, which was briefly visible to viewers.

Solicitor David Attfield, for the BBC, said it withdrew the allegations unreservedly and apologised sincerely for the great damage and distress caused.

Mr Attfield said: "Following the broadcast of Newsnight on November 2, the BBC realised that it had committed a grave error in broadcasting the report complained of. The disgraceful allegations should never have been aired."

Ian Felstead, for ITV and Schofield, said they fully accepted and wanted publicly to state that there was no truth whatsoever in the allegations against Lord McAlpine.

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Norovirus: New Warning About Vomiting Bug

Almost 880,000 people could have been affected by an outbreak of the winter vomiting bug, according to health officials.

The Health Protection Agency (HPA) says the number of confirmed cases of norovirus is 83% higher than the same time last year,

So far this season, there have been 3,046 cases in England and Wales, compared to just 1,669 cases last season.

But for every reported case there are likely to be a further 288 unreported sufferers, warns the HPA.

The bug has swept the country and has led to the closure of dozens of hospital wards.

It has also affected holidaymakers on two P&O cruise ships, the Oriana and the Azura.

Norovirus is highly contagious and can be transmitted through contact with an infected person or contaminated surfaces and objects.

It is known to spread rapidly in closed environments such as hospitals, schools and nursing homes.

Anyone displaying norovirus symptoms is urged to stay indoors

Symptoms include sudden vomiting, diarrhoea, or both, a temperature, headache and stomach cramps. The bug usually goes away within a few days.

Although people can suffer from norovirus at any time of the year, activity increases in the winter months, with most cases seen between January and March.

John Harris, a norovirus expert at the HPA, said: "The number of laboratory confirmed cases has risen again, following the drop in the number we reported last week.

"Norovirus is very contagious so we would urge anyone who thinks they may be unwell with norovirus to stay at home and stay away from hospitals and care homes.

"The infection is short-lived although it is very unpleasant while you are unwell. Most people will not need to go to see their doctor and will recover in a couple of days. It is important to take plenty of fluids to avoid dehydration."

A Department of Health spokesperson said the NHS was "well prepared" for the increase in health problems which are typical at this time of year.

The spokesperson added: "Our weekly published figures show the number of beds closed across the NHS due to norovirus symptoms is around 2%. This compares to 2.9% of beds that were closed during the peak of norovirus cases last winter."

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Two Jailed Over Kwame Ofosu-Asare Murder

Two teenagers have been jailed for life for killing a 17-year-old schoolboy.

Kwame Ofosu-Asare was mistaken for a rival in a "poisonous and senseless" gang war and knifed to death in broad daylight while walking with a friend through Brixton, south London, in March.

Nelson Idiabeta, 18, of no fixed address, and Nathaniel Okusanya, 19, of Vibart Gardens, Lambeth, south London, were found guilty of murder.

Sentencing them at the Old Bailey, Judge Richard Marks ordered that Idiabeta serve a minimum term of 19 years and Okusanya, 20 years.

He told them: "It was Kwame's misfortune to be in the wrong place at the wrong time. Neither of you has shown one iota of remorse for what you did."

Crispin Aylett QC, prosecuting, told jurors: "Kwame's death was but a part of a poisonous and senseless feud between two rival gangs of youths in south London."

Kwame was not a member of either gang, he added.

Nathaniel Okusanya and Nelson Idiabeta

The teenager had been to a recording studio in the area with his friend - the pair tried to get away by going into a side road where the friend's aunt lived, but the aunt was not home and the boys were trapped in a cul de sac.

The court heard that the attack had its roots in a feud between the TN1 (Trust No-One) gang from the Tulse Hill area of south London and Brixton-based Gas (Guns and Shanks).

Idiabeta and Okusanya were members of the TN1 group out to avenge one of their number who had been stabbed in a bus garage attack carried out by the GAS gang earlier in the day.

Kwame's father Kwaku, a sports journalist, told the court in a statement that his son was full of potential.

He was in the sixth form of Forest Hill School and excelled in sport, music and acting and had great ambitions to make something of his life.

Mr Ofosu-Asare said: "Kwame was a very vibrant, energetic and enthusiastic boy. His brother and sister are struggling to cope with his death. All our lives have been ruined."

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Landslide: Charlotte Blackman Death 'Accidental'

A young man has relived the moment 400 tons of rock buried his girlfriend as they walked beneath a cliff during a family holiday.

Matthew Carnell told an inquest how he noticed "two small stones" drop before "half the cliff face" crashed onto Freshwater Beach in Dorset, burying Charlotte Blackman.

Details of the tragedy were revealed during an inquest into the young care volunteer's death at Dorchester County Hall.

Miss Blackman, from Heanor, was spending a day at the beach with her father, 12-year-old brother Mitchell, his school friend, and Mr Carnell.

Charlotte's mother Rachel remained at their caravan park nearby.

Giving evidence at the hearing, Mr Carnell said the group inadvertently walked into the path of tragedy after deciding to return to camp along the beach.

"Within a minute, my attention was drawn to two small stones," he said.

"Almost immediately, I looked up at the cliff and saw half the cliff face fall a few metres from the sea."

Mr Carnell, who had been with Charlotte for several years, continued: "It happened so fast, it was the blink of an eye. We had no time to get out of the way.

"I grabbed Mitchell and ran a few metres into the sea. With that, a large dust cloud appeared and it was impossible to see for 20 seconds.

"I turned to the area where the cliff face fell, boulders the size of a hay stack. I couldn't see Charlotte at all.

"The height of the boulders from ground level was higher than 10ft. People approached and told us to get out of the way.

"It was complete chaos. I was in a panic and all I could think about was to get Charlotte out of there. I didn't want to stop until I found her.

"I was 10ft away from Charlotte at the time (of the landslide).

The Jurassic cliffs in Dorset where Charlotte was killed

"I remember seeing two little stones, no bigger than a 10p piece. Then the whole lot came down."

Asked by the coroner if there were any signs of cliff fall, Mr Carnell said: "There were a few boulders but they looked like they had been there for years."

Horrified eyewitnesses called emergency services while Miss Blackman's partner and her father desperately tried to pull her to safety.

Mr Blackman himself was also injured in the cliff fall.

He told onlookers concerned for his safety during the rescue attempts that if he was going to "go", it would be with his daughter.

There were conflicting accounts, as witnesses reported up to three different landslides along the beach before the one which killed Miss Blackman.

Her father, however, said he would not have taken his children along the beach if there had been evidence of recent landslides.

The death came a fortnight after Somerset couple Rosemary Snell, 67, and Michael Rolfe, 72, were killed in a landslide at the Beaminster Tunnel, less than 10 miles from Freshwater, following days of extremely heavy rainfall.

But the coroner heard evidence from a scientific expert that the weather may have had little impact on the fatal cliff fall which killed Miss Blackman.

Coroner Sheriff Payne told the hearing Miss Blackman's death could not have been predicted.

He said the National Trust appeared to be doing all it could to warn visitors of the dangers presented by the 100ft cliffs.

And he said there was not sufficient evidence to say if the weather had played a part in the landslide.

He had heard concerns that heavy rain in the county in the preceding weeks may have triggered large sections of the cliff to fall.

He said: "Sadly, Charlotte Blackman died as a result of an accident. It was a sudden act of nature that nobody could have predicted at that time."

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Olympics: Boxing Wins Funding Boost For Rio

UK Sport has announced a record pot of £347m to be invested into elite sport in the run-up to the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Games with boxing given the biggest boost.

Boxing is to receive a 44% increase in funding following the success of the likes of Nicola Adams, Anthony Joshua and Luke Campbell at the London Olympics.

Rowing, cycling, athletics and gymnastics have also been given budget increases for the next four years.

But after its disappointing performance at London 2012 swimming has had its budget slashed to £21.4m, down from £25.1m.

Team GB's swimmers won just three medals, with two going to Rebecca Adlington. Their target was five to seven.

Volleyball is also having its funding cut (down to £400,000 from £3.5m), while basketball, handball, wrestling and table tennis will miss out on the cash altogether after all missing their performance targets in London.

The huge increase in the boxing budget is the biggest for any sport. Some £13.8m will be invested, though £9.55m is conditional on the sport sorting out some internal issues.

Cycling is up to £30.6m from £26.3m, athletics has a £1.7m increase to £26.8m, rowing up from £27.3m to £32.6m, and gymnastics up from £10.8m to £14.5m.

Investment in Paralympic sport also rises dramatically, up 43% on London 2012.

Altogether, UK Sport has announced a record 11% increase in funding for Olympic and Paralympic sports until 2016. No nation has ever put more money into sport after hosting a Games.

UK Sport has set a target for Rio 2016 of at least 66 Olympic medals and 121 Paralympic medals - one more each than the 65 and 120 won in this year's Games.

The funding body's chief executive Liz Nicholl said: "We want to be the first nation in recent history to be more successful in the Olympics and Paralympics post-hosting."

UK Sport's chairman Sue Campbell admitted some sports would be devastated by the news.

She added however: "It isn't about being popular it's about making tough decisions about where public money goes."

Ms Nicholl added that swimming had been braced for bad news.

She said: "It won't be a surprise because we and they were disappointed that they didn't perform in London. They will get there."

She called on those sports disappointed by their decisions "to improve their base, their competition structure, and drive up competition before they can really compete for medals at a world level".

"We have been guided by our no-compromise approach," she added.

British Basketball described the decision to cut its funding totally ahead of Rio as "devastating" and a "waste" of previous investment.

British Cycling's Chief Executive Ian Drake welcomed his sport's budget rise, calling it "recognition of the success of our riders, our coaches and the work we put into identifying new talent".

British Gymnastics, celebrating a 34% boost in funding after London, likewise said it was "delighted" by the increase - helped by Team GB's landmark men's team bronze, Louis Smith and Max Whitlock's pommel horse silver and bronze, and Beth Tweddle's asymmetric bars bronze at this year's Games. They had been set a target of just one to two medals.

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