A DAD-OF-FOUR was forced to wait ten months for disability benefits after he was diagnosed with life-threatening cancer.

Martin Harris, 57, was diagnosed with tongue cancer in April last year and was told he had six to nine months to live.

A month later he underwent a 12-hour operation, usually considered too risky, to remove his tongue, vocal chords and part of his neck.

He has been left breathing through a hole in his neck, being fed by a tube into his stomach and using a machine to speak.

During his recovery, he was forced to give up his job in the insurance sector.

Read more in today's Gazette.