A CANCER treatment provided by a west Dorset hospital will be extended to Bridport.

Dorset County Hospital's chemotherapy nurses will take treatment closer to patients in the Bridport area following a successful period of offering treatment at Westhaven Hospital in Weymouth.

After offering the treatment in Weymouth for the last year, the outreach service will now be provided at Bridport Community Hospital in order to save patients in west Dorset from travelling to Dorchester.

Lead cancer nurse Abigail Orchard, said: "Patients in Bridport and the surrounding area have had to travel a long way to get to Dorset County Hospital for their chemotherapy which is added stress they could well do without.

"Taking the service closer to people's homes will make a huge difference and we're really grateful to the Bridport Hospital matron and her staff for helping us to make this happen."

Jo O’Farrell, one of the founders of The Living Tree cancer support group in Bridport, said patients would really appreciate being able to access chemotherapy closer to home.

“Chemotherapy is tough to deal with,” she said.

“Providing it in Bridport will mean less tiredness, fatigue and nausea from travelling. And it will make it so much easier for patients without their own transport to get essential treatment in a rural area like ours.”

The Bridport chemotherapy service will start from the end of July.

David Tett, governor of Dorset County Hospital NHS Foundation Trust, said: "The chemotherapy service at Dorset County Hospital and providing treatment at Weymouth for patients in the south of the county is to be extended to Bridport Community Hospital for those patients living in the west.

"This can be regarded as most welcome news and relieves both patients and their families from long-distance travel to obtain vital treatment."

The Living Tree is a self-help support group based in Bridport for people who have experienced cancer and for their families and carers; people at different stages in their cancer journeys – some recently diagnosed, others undergoing treatment, some in remission and others who are recovering.

There is a weekly drop-in meeting on Fridays between 2pm and 4.30pm at the Quaker Meeting House, South Street. For more information, please visit thelivingtree.org.uk or call 01308 427851.