A young cancer sufferer has said he had been forced into selling his World Cup semi-final tickets to raise cash for his treatment.

Pharmacy student Nicholas Keher, 23, from Formby, near Liverpool in northwest England, was diagnosed with bowel cancer in February.

The drug Avastin, which specialists claim will give him the best chance of survival, is not available on Britain's free-healthcare-for-all National Health Service (NHS).

Keher believes the drug has not been sanctioned for use because it is very expensive. He is trying to raise 50,000 pounds to buy the treatment himself by auctioning his prized tickets to the July 5 match.

"I have always been told by the specialists that my best chance of survival is through using Avastin," the student said Thursday.

"But that is not available on the NHS despite numerous pleas by myself, my family, doctors and local MPs."

"I have been told that I have to buy the drug myself and pay for the treatment which will cost around 50,000 pounds.

"I truly believe it is not available on the NHS because it is too expensive.

"Putting money before people's lives is just not right."

Avastin was licensed for use in Europe for advanced bowel cancer in January last year.

Britain's medical watchdog, the National Institute for Clinical Excellence, is assessing the drug for NHS use and is expected to issue its advice later this year.

Keher hopes to raise a big slice of the money he needs to pay for his treatment.