A mum and her family have appealed for help after her treatment was delayed - saying cancer patients have been left behind during the pandemic.
Elaina Serghi, 40, has written heartbreaking notes to her young children to read after her death - but believes things could have been very different.
Her family has turned to crowdfunding in the hope of accessing private treatment that can ensure she is there for children Leo, six, and Christina, three, for as long as possible.
Latest figures show cancer treatment times have reached a record high as the government faces calls to deal with the huge backlog.
Elaina, from Manchester, told The Mirror she had to wait for two months for a colonoscopy after falling ill in early 2020, and an operation to remove a tumour was put back by more than a week.
She was too ill to begin immediate chemotherapy after surgery and learned late last year that the disease, which started in her colon, had spread to her lungs and stomach.
Elaina said: "I want to be around for as long as I can, at my age I shouldn't be writing notes for my kids to read if I die, it's heartbreaking.
"I genuinely think it could have been different or at least not as bad."
Elaina is among thousands who have turned to crowdfunding in the hope of extending her life, with more than £40,000 raised toward private treatment after the disease spread.
She said: "It's spread to my stomach now, I'm just hoping that new drugs will give me a bit longer with my family, that's all I can ask.
"It's really bad, cancer patients are being neglected. It's not fair what we've gone through, I've got two young children who need me."
Elaina's family have launched a GoFundMe appeal to help pay for private healthcare and drugs to prolong her life.
So far more than £48,000 has been raised to support her.
The moving appeal, set up by cousin Ana Papathomas, states: "Heartbreaklingly, the chance to continue this fight has been taken from her. The only treatment which offers hope is not available on the NHS.
"It can only be obtained privately. Elaina's only way to keep fighting is to seek funding for this treatment.
"As you can imagine, this is not cheap and while it didn't come easy for Elaina to take this decision and reach out for help, her single-minded desire to survive, to live, has left her with no other choice."
Campaigners have called on the Government to prioritise dealing with the UK's huge cancer backlog, with more and more forced to turn to crowdfunding as the disease progressed.
An estimated 500,000 people with suspected cancer will have to wait longer than two weeks to see an oncologist this year, Government analysis showed.
And it is expected that more than 75,000 will not start treatment within the 31 or 62 day targets set by hospitals.
Craig Russell, whose daughter Kelly Smith died aged just 31 in June 2020 after her treatment was paused at the start of the pandemic, said more and more people are having to turn to crowdfunding.
Craig, who set up the Catch up on Cancer campaign following Kelly's death, said: "I've heard far too many stories, there are lots of loved ones who have lost ones avoidably.
"Everyone is arguing about who is driving the fire engine, but the house is still burning down."
He said the government's target to bring waiting times to pre-pandemic levels by next year simply isn't good enough.
"They're saying it'll take 12 months to get back to mediocrity, that's not the way we should be dealing with cancer patients," he said.
He is haunted by the possibility that mum-of-one Kelly, from Macclesfield, could have lived longer if her appointments had not stopped.
"There are questions over whether something could have been done, that makes it impossible to reconcile," Craig, 52, said.
"That question - have we been cheated out of six months, six years, 60 years - you just don't know. The thought of other people going through this is heartbreaking."
Minesh Patel, head of policy at Macmillan Cancer Support, said after figures were published last week: "We know this will be having a devastating impact on many people with cancer who are experiencing agonising delays and risk a worse prognosis."
In a statement the Department of Health and Social Care said: “Cancer diagnosis and treatment remains a top priority. The pandemic has put enormous pressures on the NHS, causing waiting lists to grow, but now most cancer services are back to or above pre-pandemic levels.
“Our record investment in the NHS includes an extra £2bn this year and £8bn over the next three years to cut waiting times, including through delivering an extra 9 million checks, scans and operations, making sure more patients get the treatment they need sooner.
“Last week the health and social care secretary declared a national war on cancer, with the launch of a call for evidence to inform a new 10-year plan to improve cancer care, speed up diagnosis and invest in innovative new treatments.”
