Blood cancer treatment centre becoming reality (From Daily Echo)

Blood cancer treatment centre becoming reality

3:23pm Sunday 24th February 2013 in News

SOUTHAMPTON’S long-held dream of a specialist treatment centre for blood cancer patients is finally becoming a reality.

Building work on the state-of-the-art outpatients unit started at the end of last year and now, two months on, it is already taking shape.

As well as refurbishing an out-of-use area of Southampton General Hospital, the work has involved an extension of that into a courtyard.

At the moment the steel frame for the 137sqm extension has been completed and work has begun to get the roof on and the pipes and wires installation has started.

It is hoped that the unit will be handed over from the contractors, Kier Southern, to hospital bosses in July, when the process of getting in the equipment and furnishings will begin.

It is hoped that the first patients will be treated on the unit in August.

This has all been made possible thank to the generous support of thousands of fundraisers who have helped support the Daily Echo-backed Red and White Appeal.

But there is still a bit more money needed before the £1.76m target has been reached, so it is still vital for donations to keep rolling in.

Mark Maffey, project manager, said: “We are working on a live hospital site so we have had to work closely with neighbouring departments to ensure as little disturbance as possible to patients and visitors.

“I am really pleased with how everything has gone so far and more importantly we are on target.”