A WORLD-CLASS chemotherapy unit is set to be created at Burnley General Hospital.

The £200,000 development, set to open next spring, will mean people are not forced to travel to Manchester’s Christie hospital or the specialist Rosemere Cancer Centre at Royal Preston Hospital for treatment.

MORE TOP STORIES:

A £100,000 appeal has now been launched by Rosemere to help pay for the unit through public donations, while East Lancashire Hospitals NHS Trust is also set to contribute £100,000.

The hospital currently has a small chemotherapy suite but it is too small to meet the demands of the 3,000 people from East Lancashire who are newly diagnosed with cancer approximately each year.

The new unit will be situated within the main hospital, adjacent to the Casterton Avenue entrance, and will have its own dedicated parking area.

Inside, it will be totally patient-focused, designed to ensure a comfortable and relaxing environment to help bring about the most positive treatment outcomes.

It is understood that the £100,000 raised by the public will go towards funding sensory rooms and facilities that will be world class to make cancer patients more comfortable.

Deborah Sullivan, East Lancashire Hospitals Trust’s Macmillan lead cancer nurse, said: “Around 4,000 chemotherapy treatments are now delivered annually at Burnley General.

“With improving cancer care and an ageing population, our concern was that in the not too distant future we would reach capacity and have to turn local patients away, referring them instead to other hospitals further afield.

“This is the last thing anyone wanted. With the new unit, we have the room to look after all our local patients for the foreseeable future and we will be able to do so in a facility that is second to none.”

The Rosemere Burnley Chemotherapy Unit Appeal will be headed by the charity’s East Lancashire fundraising co-ordinator Dan Hill. For fundraising ideas, call Mr Hill on 01772 528346. Donations can be made on 01772 522913.