League of Friends donation will benefit breast cancer surgery patients

A new piece of equipment is now up and running in the Primrose Unit at Derriford Hospital, thanks to an incredibly generous donation of over £63,000 from the League of Friends.

The portable Faxitron machine enables surgeons to take x-rays during surgery to ensure that all cancerous tissue has been successfully removed. This means that the number of repeat surgeries for breast cancer patients will be reduced to as low as 10%.

Consultant Breast Surgeon, Stephanie Jenkins, said, “This is a vital piece of equipment because it allows us to check that the tissue that we take from the patient has the cancer in it, but more importantly, we can check that the edges are sufficiently clear from the cancer to try and prevent the patients having to undergo a second operation.”

The new Faxitron machine has enabled the hospital to replace an older piece of equipment and will see a significant improvement in efficiency and turnaround time for patients.

Clinical Admin Manager, Wendy Jacobs, Consultant Breast Surgeon, Stephanie Jenkins and Senior Radiographer, Lucille Richmond, who commissioned the request for the new piece of equipment are thrilled and have extended their gratitude to the League of Friends.

Derriford Hospital's League of Friends has been raising money for over 25 years and to date have spent over £2million on medical and other equipment for the hospital.

If you’d like to get involved in raising funds for Plymouth Hospitals NHS Trust and/or to find out more about the funds raised, please visit: http://bit.ly/PHNTfundraising