Health

Stephanie Theobald (left), from Manchester, was left heartbroken at her 12 week scan when the nurse revealed she couldn't find a baby's heartbeat. The 35-year-old was told her only options were to wait and give birth naturally or undergo surgery. But when doctors performed a biopsy it was revealed it had been a complete molar pregnancy - meaning abnormal cells had grown instead of a baby. Tests revealed she had a malignant tumour and needed chemotherapy - which could put an end to her ever having children with her husband Michael (right), 38.

EXCLUSIVE: A range of leading nutritionists reveal exactly how dietary changes can help you to manage urinary incontinence. Cucumber (top left) contains silica - believed to be helpful to support the bladder due to its anti-inflammatory factors. Vitamin C (top middle) helps to preserve collagen, which is important for elasticity in the tissues that support the bladder and vagina. Magnesium, found in kale (top right), helps to maintain muscle and nerves function and is believed to help with incontinence. But avoid alcohol (bottom right), as this can interfere with the neurological signals from the brain to the bladder. While high levels of caffeine (bottom middle) have been associated with the condition and sugary foods (bottom left) are known to aggravate the condition.

The ‘bright, intelligent’ girl aged 14 from London was diagnosed with cancer in August last year and died a month ago after all treatment options failed with the wish to be cryogenically frozen. The teenager, attracted by the promises of cryogenic websites, was convinced that if her body was frozen it would one day give her a ‘chance to be cured and woken up’. High Court Judge Mr Justice Peter Jackson has now ruled that her mother – who approved of her daughter’s dying wishes – should be allowed to decide the fate of her body, which is currently being held at the Cryonics Institute in Michigan.

Christine Peggrem (right), 52, from West Moors, Dorset, had complained of abdominal pain for weeks but put off visiting her GP until it became too much to bear. The maths teacher was later admitted to hospital and diagnosed with bowel cancer last month. But just two weeks later, doctors revealed she was terminal and had just weeks left. Mrs Peggrem and her partner of 32 years Clifford (left), 51, decided to finally tie the knot in an emotional ceremony at the start of the month. However, her health rapidly deteriorated and she died at home with her husband by her side earlier this week. Mr Peggrem, who met his wife in 1984 (inset), regrets her not seeking answers from her GP earlier and has warned others not to ignore any cancer-related symptoms.

A seven-year-old boy who lost half his skull in a fall has been given a new lease of life thanks to a 3D printed skull. Teddy Ward was just five when he slipped and fell down a cliff in Topanga Canyon, near Los Angeles. The impact crushed his head, shattering all of the bone on his left side (x-ray pictured, top right). After surgery to replace the skull was unsuccessful, he was sent home with a helmet, ordered to wear it 24 hours a day (bottom right). It meant Teddy - described by his mother as a 'rumbunctious kid' - could not go to friends parties for fear of getting on a bounce house, and his friends parents could not bear the risk of hurting him during a sleepover. But now he is running around like any of child, thanks to a newly-designed skull that almost perfectly mimics the original (pictured, left, after surgery this year). It was created by doctors at the Children's Hospital of Los Angeles after years of research to find a solution for Teddy. The final product, surgically implanted earlier this year, was made from a material called PolyEtherEtherKetone (or, PEEK). Uniquely, it bears all the physical hallmarks of real skull material.

Scott Thomas, 51, from Rhos-on-Sea in North Wales received the smartwatch as a present from his wife and says that it enabled him to spot an abnormally low heart rate. Mr Thomas is pictured left reading his Apple Watch (inset) and right following an operation to fit an ICD (implantable cardiac defibrillator).

A report has named and shamed the stores that do nothing to remove toxic chemicals from their products. From shampoo and clothing to toys and cleaning materials, there are all kinds of everyday items that could be manufactured with hormone-disrupting chemicals. It may not be something at the forefront of everyone's minds as the holiday shopping season kicks off.

Ashley Watson (left), 12, from Mill Creek, Washington, was diagnosed with liver failure at eight months old. She received a new organ in 2010 (inset), but doctors revealed it had caused permanent damage to her eye. But until she goes blind, her family are attempting to make as many memories as possible. Tickets for her favourite band have been bought and trip to Paris planned while has also been given her own fluffy puppy. Her mother, Stephanie Watson (right), 34, said: 'We're determined to make as many visual memories as we can.'

Sienna Duffield's family, from Gloucester, were forced to wash her bed sheets daily and constantly had to throw out of clothes because of her blood stains from her painful facial blisters (left). Her family were forced to wash her bed sheets daily and constantly had to throw out of clothes because of her blood stains. After eventually being prescribed antibiotics - despite doctors thinking she had eczema, her face has cleared up (right) and it is hoped the virus will never return. Her mother, Savina French-Bell (inset), 21, is now sharing her story to help other parents battling the same condition.

Both the babies, from Rajasthan, India, have a seperate heart and lungs. However, they are reliant on the same liver and share a large portion of blood.

A set of conjoined twin girls have been separated in a US hospital. Miracle and Testimony Ayeni, from Nigeria, were conjoined at the pelvis. The girls, who turned one today, underwent an 18-hour operation at Le Bonheur Children's Hospital in Memphis, Tennessee, on November 7 and 8. They arrived in the US on June 28 with their parents Samuel Olusegun Ayeni and Mary Abiodun Ayeni, their older sister, and their pastor. It was their only hope at separating the girls, after trying and failing to find a hospital nearby that could carry out the operation. Finally, after months of research, they were referred to Le Bonheur, whose surgeons offered to do the life-saving operation free of charge. Pictured: the girls in Memphis before their procedure (top left), waiting to fly from Lagos with their parents (bottom left), and after the procedure (right).

Nathan Lewis (right), 30, and three-year-old Thiago (left), from Huddersfield, were both born with neurofibromatosis type 1. Mr Lewis did not know he suffered from the genetic condition until tests revealed he had developed a rare form of tumour as a result of having it in 2009. While his son was diagnosed with the same type of growth after doctors were unsure what had cause a two inch difference in the size of his legs. But after an initial operation to remove the mass, Mr Lewis has been told it has now developed into a form of cancer. However, the NHS won't fund his treatment. His only hope of being cured means raising £75,000 for pioneering cancer therapy abroad.

Rylee Brady (left), from Belfast, Northern Ireland, was diagnosed with a neuroblastoma - a rare form of the disease more common in childhood - just days after he was born. Doctors warned he may have to undergo chemotherapy in an attempt to save his life. But they advised his family to wait and see how the tumour developed before starting any treatment (inset). Despite the agonising wait to see how the growth responded naturally, it was revealed that his tumour had began to shrink. And now, the one-year-old is cancer-free and is now a happy, healthy little boy, his parents (right) Shelbie Barnes, 23, and Michael Brady, 27, say.

Padraig Henry (pictured right and inset) was admitted to Alder Hey Children’s Hospital in Liverpool Padraig Henry was admitted to Alder Hey Children’s Hospital in Liverpool. Doctors knew the hospital was fighting a virulent strain of the bug, but kept his parents Colin Henry (pictured left) and Karen Bailey in the dark and decided to go ahead with the surgery regardless. Padraig was born at 28 weeks in April 2013 weighing just 2.5lbs and needed an operation to repair a hole in his bowel aged just four days. He contracted E.coli soon after the surgery. A catalogue of blunders thenmeant medics failed to realise he had been infected and, as a consequence, treatment with the correct antibiotics was delayed.

Frankie Duke (pictured) was just two years old when he put a children's chair on top of his Thomas the Tank table to get his hands on two Spiderman chocolate calendars his father David, 28, had pinned on his bedroom wall. But the toddler toppled off and banged his head, causing a bleed on the brain which left him with extensive brain damage. Frankie battled to learn to talk and eat again but has been left unable to walk. This month his parents Rachel Nesbitt, 28 and David (inset), a ground worker, have been told his only hope of walking again is a £30,000 operation in America not funded by the NHS. The family from Fareham, Portsmouth, are faced with a race against time to raise the money before he becomes too old for the operation to have maximum success.

Ece Ozcan, 19, from Egham, Surrey, was unable to feel her left leg and had pins and needles when she woke up - but assumed she had just slept in a funny position. Her parents rushed her to hospital, but doctors were baffled as to why she was paralysed (right). They eventually diagnosed her with an isthmic defect. It had caused scoliosis and a hernia - which pressed on her nerves in her bent spine (inset), squashing them and leaving her unable to move. Doctors revealed she would never walk again - but she refused to accept their diagnosis and searched for a surgeon who would be willing to operate on her. Two years and two procedures later, she has defied the odds (left) and is now back on her feet again.

Alicia Goss, right, was labelled a medical mystery by baffled doctors who couldn't understand the reason for her sudden uncontrollable shaking. Many months later she was diagnosed with Wilson's Disease, symptoms which include tremors, memory loss and psychosis. She had to return home from Canterbury university to be cared for by her parents (left) before eventually regaining her strength to head back to pursue her degree.

Melanie Lynch (left), 37, from Birmingham, was first given topical steroid creams as a toddler to treat her flaky skin. But over the next 30 years her condition worsened (top middle), forcing her to use the treatment on her entire body. When her skin didn't appear to be recovering, the mother-of-two made the decision to quit the treatment - but immediately suffered horrific reactions, causing her to have her face bandaged to prevent further damage (bottom middle). It caused her face to swell, her hair to fall out and her skin to turn bright red - often forcing her to spend months inside her house, away from strangers. But after three years battling her horrific symptoms she finally has clear skin (right) - after the steroids were actually making her skin worse.