Our reporter Louise Bellicoso has highlighted stories featuring the postcode lottery of treatment using cancer drugs, a Buxton man's battle over surgery for his brain tumour and the effects of changes on patients during major reorganisation in the NHS.

We have long highlighted the issues that matter to our readers when it comes to health.

Back in 2006, we featured the case of Ethel Hallam from Whaley Bridge who was denied treatment for cancer because of where she lived. If Mrs Hallam had lived a few miles down the road, she would have been able to recieve the treatment without question because primary care trusts in Stockport and Manchester funded it.

A few months after raising Mrs Hallam's story in the Advertiser, we also highlighted the story of Chinley's Maureen Barnes, who was again denied treatment for cancer because of the PCT's funding policy.

Thankfully, both ladies won their appeals to get the drugs after we featured their stories.

More recently, in April we featured the case of David Gill who had been turned down after a six and half year campaign to recoup more than £40,000 his parents had paid out for him to have a life-saving operation in America.

Recognising the importance of newspapers in helping with his fight, David said: "Local newspapers like The Buxton Advertiser are a really good platform for people to raise issues such as mine and I'm grateful to the Advertiser for giving me a voice."

In December, we highlighted the differences in the amount of money spent by local PCTs on cancer patients, revealing Derbyshire County PCT spent an average of £8,262 on each of its patients, compared to £14,999 spent on Manchester PCT's patients.

In the last year, we've also revealed how Derbyshire County PCT were not restoring opening hours at the town's Minor Injuries Unit despite having a funding surplus of more than £4 million, how the gap in life expectancy between rich and poor people in Derbyshire is a staggering 17 years and the case of Buxton pensioner Geoff Shipley, who had to travel to Crewe for treatment for a nose-bleed because of cuts to NHS services in the town.