Chemotherapy unit comes to Kendal! – First patients treated tomorrow as stage 1 of cancer unit becomes a reality.

The long running campaign to bring a cancer unit to Westmorland General Hospital sees its first fruits tomorrow when the first patients are treated at the new Chemotherapy ward.

South Lakes MP Tim Farron has been leading the campaign to bring a cancer unit to Kendal. Tim walked a gruelling 44 miles from the Cancer Unit at Preston Hospital to Westmorland General Hospital to highlight our need for our own local cancer unit, and gained the support of the whole community when he launched the campaign two years ago.

Over 8,000-people have signed the petition and thousands of residents have backed the campaign locally.

An official opening of the unit is being organised by the Trust in the coming weeks, but tomorrow the first patients will be treated at Kendal.

Tim said, "For patients being treated for cancer, the fact that they have to travel outside of South Lakeland to get treatment is an added burden. Our campaign to win a Cancer Unit for Westmorland General Hospital is about meeting the needs of cancer patients and their families here in our community. I want to pay tribute to Tony Halsall and the Trust for their vision in helping to make this happen and in particular to thousands of local people who supported our campaign to win a Cancer Unit here - this is proof that we can make a huge difference if we stand together."

He added "Chemotherapy at Kendal is just stage 1 of our campaign, stage 2 is our bid for a Radiotherapy unit and I'm delighted that the bid has now gone in for Radiotherapy - but it will take another big community effort to make sure that we win this too."