A Cheshire dad who celebrated being cancer-free by booking a £12,500 holiday to Gran Canaria ended up losing 'every bit of blood in his body' by the side of the pool.
Holiday turned nightmare
Peter Beetham, 49, from Winsford, Cheshire, jetted off to Gran Canaria on March 13 with his partner Sharleene Hickman and a friend. The trip was meant to mark the end of three years of chemotherapy. But just two days in, while lounging by the pool, he started 'spewing a litre of blood' before collapsing.
Rushed to a local hospital, staff told him he had sunstroke and sent him away. The next day, after 'losing constant blood' on the toilet, he booked a £50 flight home on March 15.
Internal bleeding discovered
Peter went straight to Manchester Royal Infirmary after landing, where doctors found an ulcer that had 'exploded' in his bowel — a result of surgery to remove his pancreas in August 2025.
He said: 'I had seven blood transfusions and a small operation and now I'm on the mend. It was horrific, I'm very lucky to be alive. I was feeling awful, they said I should have been dead at the side of the pool. They said even the flight back could have killed me. They didn't know how I was alive.'
Recovery and fear of future holidays
Peter, a father of two, is now recovering but must return for another iron transfusion and scans. He said: 'I had four cameras down on me, the first three couldn't find anything and the fourth one they found the ulcer. I came home for six hours and started spewing blood again so went back to hospital.'
He added: 'I literally lost every bit of blood in my body, I was dead. I'm very lucky. It ruined the holiday. As soon as I started spewing blood I went white, my lips went crystal clear, I thought I was going to die on the side of the pool.'
Peter is now too scared to plan another holiday, saying: 'Luckily nothing happened on the flight. I'm too scared to plan another holiday.'
