Press Release - 10th August 2004
New
Cancer Equipment Unveiled In Honour Of Preston Father
George Woods with Christie Consultant, Dr Richard CowanFamily and friends of a Preston man who lost his fight against
cancer recently visited The Christie where he was treated
to see
high-tech new equipment bought in his memory unveiled.
Michael Woods,
of Higher Walton near Preston, died last year after months of battling
against the disease. But following his death,
family and friends decided to come together to honour his memory
and set about raising money for The Christie, Europe's largest specialist
cancer hospital.
Following a series of events including a star-studded
celebrity gala and a sleep over in a haunted house, Michael's wife Shirley,
who runs Woods Waste skip hire in Blackpool, family and friends have
raised more than £18,000 which will pay for a bladder scanner
for the hospital as well as going towards research projects for bladder
cancer.
Patients with cancer are often treated with radiotherapy, but
this can affect the bladder function. The new equipment quickly and
efficiently
identifies these problems and avoids the need for other painful intervention,
speeding up treatment if necessary.
For example, patients being treated
for prostate cancer can experience bladder damage as a direct result of
their treatment and the new
equipment will help assess the exact nature of the damage more quickly
so the necessary treatment can begin.
Shirley, who visited with son
George, aged eight, and Grace, aged two, said: "The team at Christie's
did their very best for Michael, but his cancer was too aggressive. Michael
was so brave and caring,
we knew he would want us to do something to help other patients in
the future, so we started fundraising and now, eighteen months later,
we are delighted to have enough money to be able to purchase equipment
that will benefit patients for many years to come."
Appeals Director
Toni Leden said: "We're
very grateful to Shirley and her friends and family for everything they
have done. The new
scanner is a marvellous piece of equipment that will help staff treat
patients more effectively and we are delighted it has been named
the Michael Woods Scanner in his memory."
For more information please contact:
The Christie in Manchester is one of the leading cancer centres in Europe - registering around 12,500 new patients and treating about 40,000 patients every year.
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