Cancer patients living in Sheffield and beyond now have more opportunities to beat the disease following the opening of a new research and treatment suite at Weston Park Hospital.
The unit, funded through Weston Park Hospital Cancer Charity’s £1.3m Do Your Bit campaign and support from Westfield Health and Yorkshire Cancer Research, will provide patients with ‘gold standard’ cancer treatments and facilities in a warm and welcoming environment.
Weston Park Hospital is one of only four dedicated cancer hospitals in the country and treats patients from all over South Yorkshire, North Nottinghamshire and North Derbyshire – a population of almost 1.8million people. Cancer patients from as far afield as Liverpool and Middlesbrough also use the unit.
The light and airy purpose-built suite, located on the first floor of the hospital, will give even more patients opportunities to take part in life-changing cancer research studies.
Incorporating a new reception and waiting area, the new, expanded unit will be able to treat twice the number of patients as was previously possible, giving even more patients access to pioneering drugs and treatments.
The number of cancer patients taking part in clinical trials in Sheffield has dramatically increased over the past few years, with one in five patients taking part in clinical trials in 2014 compared to one in 25 in 2000.
The suite includes a main treatment area with 10 comfortable reclining chairs for patients having cancer treatments that may last for several hours; and a new private consulting room, which gives additional space for hospital staff to talk to and assess patients and give the latest information about chemotherapy treatments and research. There are also two private bedrooms, including one with en-suite facilities, for any patients benefiting from new treatments who need to stay in the unit for longer periods of time.
Professor Rob Coleman, director of the Sheffield Cancer Research Centre’s Academic Unit of Clinical Oncology ay Weston Park Hospital, said: “We are delighted that this new treatment suite has opened its doors to patients. The new facilities really are the gold standard in cancer care, and would not have been possible without the incredible generosity of members of the public, Weston Park Hospital Cancer Charity, Yorkshire Cancer Research and Westfield Health. Thanks to the opening of this new suite, patients in the region will now have even more opportunities to take part in pioneering national and international cancer research, paving the way for better treatments and care in South Yorkshire and beyond.”
