Little Aston Officially Opened

Following the completion of our latest radiotherapy centre in Little Aston, near Birmingham CancerPartnersUK are particularly pleased to be able to offer private patients from Sutton Coldfield, and indeed the whole of the West Midlands and Staffordshire, fast access to a complete spectrum of cancer care and cutting-edge treatments.

The centre, which is the first of its kind in the Midlands, houses the latest radiotherapy technologies, including Intensity-Modulated Radiation Therapy (IMRT) and Image Guided Radiation Therapy (IGRT) and complements the existing cancer services provided at Spire Little Aston Hospital.

Jean Collins, of Sutton Coldfield and Lucy Couturier of Boldmere, were invited to officially open the new, state-of-the-art centre, which has been treating patients since April.

Married mother-of-two Jean, of Sutton Coldfield, said:

“I was delighted to be asked to officially open the centre – which gave me the utmost in care when I was treated with radiotherapy this year. I was lucky that my breast cancer was diagnosed early on, meaning I didn’t have to undergo a mastectomy or chemotherapy but did need radiotherapy treatment every day for more than three weeks. The nearest centre for this used to be the Queen Elizabeth, which isn’t local for me and involves driving through Birmingham city centre. To have this newly launched facility on my doorstep has been a godsend and I’m so lucky to have had the option to be treated there. The staff and care have been fabulous.”

Mother-of-two Lucy Couturier, aged 38, who has also just completed a three-week course of radiotherapy following a double mastectomy and chemotherapy, after being diagnosed with breast cancer last summer, said:

“Cancer is in the family and my mother died of breast cancer when I was just nine, so in a way I was always expecting it. I was diagnosed with an aggressive type of cancer and therefore had chemotherapy to start with, followed by a double mastectomy to remove the majority of the risk of it coming back. This was followed by breast reconstruction and radiotherapy. I have two young daughters, and if I’d have had to travel far for my radiotherapy treatment it would have had a big impact as I have to take them to school and pick them up – so the new facility so close to home has been great. Not only are the staff second-to-none, but the equipment, facilities, and overall atmosphere there is of such high quality. It has a very personal feel. During half term I had to take the girls in with me and the staff took the time to explain the equipment and treatment to them to take away any fears they had about me having radiotherapy.

“Even little things like availability of parking, which can be stressful in larger hospitals, was stress free and appointments always ran to time. Appointment times were also flexible so I could change them if I needed to. A centre like this is a brilliant development for the locality and surrounding areas,” she added.

Clinical Oncologist, Dr John Glaholm said:

“The new centre offers the highest level of technology and standards of care for delivering advanced radiotherapy, and will be an enormous benefit for all patients, not only those within the immediate locality.”

CancerPartners UK Little Aston’s centre manager, Stuart Southgate, says:

“The official launch was a huge success and the reaction to the centre from patients and specialists has been overwhelming. It’s such a positive development for the area.”