A STATE-OF-THE-ART ward for young cancer sufferers paid for by the public has celebrated its first birthday.

The £2.4m Teenage Cancer Trust unit at Southampton General Hospital held a party to mark the milestone with some of the 75 young people who were treated there.

Current and former patients cut the birthday cake and created a special piece of birthday art to commemorate the anniversary which will be displayed on the ward.

Designed with young people in mind to have a home-from- home feel, the unit, opened by Sarah Ferguson, Duchess of York, has six inpatient en suite bedrooms with sofa beds for family and friends to stay overnight, as well as four day care beds.

Catering for 16 to 24-year-olds from across Hampshire, Dorset, the Channel Islands, South Wiltshire, the Isle of Wight and West Sussex, it has a social room where young people can play pool, listen to music, play games consoles or watch films, a kitchen and a lounge.

Teenage Cancer Trust says it still needs to raise £1,000 a day to continue supporting the unit.