A Beccles-based charity has donated £2,000 to a medical centre which treats patients battling cancer and blood disorders.

Beccles and Districts Lions Club presented a cheque to the Sandra Chapman Centre at James Paget University Hospital in Gorleston last week.

The centre provides day care for patients suffering from oncology and haematology disorders.

And since opening in May 1992 it has treated around 60 patients each day through chemotherapy and blood transfusions.

Lions vice president Chris Lambert said: “We felt that the work done by the Sandra Chapman Centre is so necessary and valuable that we made it a specific project for the club and through the generous giving by the people of Beccles and the surrounding community we were able to raise this amount.

“We are all very proud to present this money to the centre.”

Mr Lambert, whose wife Carolyn has previously used the centre, said: “It is amazing the difference it makes in people’s lives by having the opportunity to use the centre.

“It offers a real boost to the community.”

The centre is staffed by a team of doctors and nurses with a wide range of specialised skills.

By providing treatment on a day care basis patients who were previously forced to stay in hospital overnight for several days at a time can remain at home and within their communities as much as possible.

Lucy Goldspink, coordinator at the centre, was overjoyed by the charity’s donation.

She said: “All donations to the Centre are appreciated and they are spent on the latest medical equipment and staff training, as well as developing the service we provide, along with improving the comfort of the patients and their relatives.”

For Lions member Keith Coomber the presentation was particularly poignant as he had previously been treated at the centre.

He said: “The staff really do make you feel so relaxed and comfortable while you are having your treatment.

“They are so dedicated and helpful, they are all truly fantastic.”

For more information on the work of the Sandra Chapman Centre and the services it provides email Lucy Goldspink at – lucy.goldspink@jpaget.nhs.uk