A YOUNG bus driver is hoping to raise enough money to be able to fund her cancer treatment.

Alex Shepherd has a rare and aggressive form of ovarian cancer and needs to find £114,000 a year.

The 22-year-old has been a driver with Reading Buses for two years and works for the company with her mother Anna.

She is determined to do everything in her power to improve her health and has started a fundraising page.

On her Go Fund Me page, she said: "Life is truly precious. You never know what's around the corner so make the most of everyday.

"I've decided to be positive. I will be one of the lucky ones.

"My boyfriend and I don't think we'll be able to have that baby we've always dreamt about and it's sad, but right now the priority is to concentrate on staying alive.

"Since having three rounds of chemotherapy I've been through horrible side effects including hair loss. "

In April she noticed increasing pain in her stomach with bloating and looking seven months pregnant.

After having an MRI, doctors discovered a cyst attached to her ovary, which she had removed a month later.

Doctors thought everything was normal after the operation, but the cyst had ruptured during surgery and her lymph nodes were enlarged.

The 'startling figure' is just for the drug and the cost to administer it.

Alex added: "Doctors told me that the cyst was cancerous. When I thought it couldn't get worse than that, I was told I didn't just have ovarian cancer, I had an extremely rare and aggressive strain that came with a 'strikingly poor' prognosis.

"Immunotherapy has proved to work wonders for my cancer, but unfortunately isn't available on the NHS. If chemo doesn't work then immunotherapy will be the plan B and my only hope.

"But only if I get the funds to cover treatment. The costs for this treatment are terrifying and a cost no one could prepare for in a lifetime. But I am reaching out to anyone that can help me."

Fellow colleagues are already jumping to Anna’s aid, with many pledging money on the fundraising page.

Visit: gofundme.com/alex039s-journey if you would like to donate.