Meeting on future of Londonderry cancer centre

A public meeting will be held on Monday evening to discuss the future of the planned radiotherapy unit at Altnagelvin Hospital in Londonderry.

Earlier this month the Health Minister Michael McGimpsey said he intended to go ahead with building the unit, but that there was no cash to run it.

Sinn Fein councillor Paul Fleming is one of those organising the meeting.

He said people in Derry and Donegal are “angry” that there is doubt over the future of the unit.

“There is a great deal of concern about this,” he said.

“For far too many years people from the north west have been travelling to Belfast and Dublin for treatment.

“If the money is not made available to run the unit, it will deprive the people of this area.”

On Friday members of Co-operating for Cancer Care NorthWest met the Western Health and Social Services Trust to discuss the radiotherapy unit.

Noelle Duddy from CCC(NW) said she remained “confident” that all patients, regardless of which side of the border they lived on, would have equal access to treatment according to their clinical need.

“It is now essential that the business case for the unit is approved immediately,” she said.

The public meeting on the radiotherapy unit will take place on Monday at 19.30 GMT in the Gasyard Centre in Derry.