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NEWS: 18 July 2005

Singer Ronan Keating drops in to open new hospital screening unit

Singer Ronan Keating made a special visit to officially open the West Anglia Pathology Services Cytology Screening Unit in Newmarket on 15 July 2005 before appearing at 'Newmarket Nights'.

The unit analyses cervical smear tests, providing a service for women across much of South Cambridgeshire and West Suffolk.

Studying cervical cells can help detect pre-cancerous abnormal cells from the cervix, and subsequent treatment can prevent the development of cervical cancer.

Ronan Keating unveils the plaque with Malcolm Stamp, Addenbrooke's Chief Executive

Cancer is a subject close to Ronan's heart, as his mother Marie died from breast cancer in 1998. Speaking about the visit, Ronan said: "Cancer is a cruel disease but if it is caught in time it can be cured. The new screening unit will help save lives, so I am thrilled to be invited to open it."

The new unit in Newmarket opened earlier this year and combines the hospital laboratories of Addenbrooke's, Hinchingbrooke and the West Suffolk hospitals. Scientists will be analysing over 60,000 cervical smear tests a year using the latest technology, improving the service for women.

The lab offers a new technology, which increases the chances of detecting important abnormalities of the cervix (neck of the womb). Tests are easier to read under the microscope which means that women receive their results earlier, and because they are clearer, there is less chance that women have to return for a repeat test.

Cancer is a subject close to Ronan's heart

There are many other benefits to the new unit, including meeting the needs of a growing population, modernising the service and providing facilities for teaching, research and training.

Colin Carr, Addenbrooke's Pathology Services Manager, said: "I am absolutely delighted that Ronan broke from his busy schedule to open this extremely important development in the fight against cancer. The new facilities allow us to use the latest technology and provide a training centre for the whole of the east of England."

As part of the evening's events, Ronan released balloons for a balloon race to raise funds for the Cambridge Breast Unit. The person whose label is found furthest from Newmarket wins a home PC courtesy of August Computers. Balloon labels can be bought for £1 from Addenbrooke's Hospital at Pathology reception at Clinical Biochemistry, Level 4, or the Fund & Friends of Addenbrooke’s office in the outpatient hall.

Notes to editors
• The NHS Cytology Screening Programme was set up in its current format in the late 1980s to provide a cervical cancer screening service to women from the age of 25 years to 64 years.
• 4 million women in the UK are screened each year, 400,000 of those in the eastern region.
• The national programme has been extremely effective in reducing the number of women dying from cervical cancer, preventing around 4,500 deaths per year.
• For more information see the CancerBacup website:
http://www.cancerbacup.org.uk/Cancertype/Cervix
or the NHS Cancer Screening Programme website:
http://www.cancerscreening.nhs.uk/cervical/index.html
or the Cancer Research UK website:
http://www.cancerresearchuk.org/aboutcancer/specificcancers/cervicalcancer
• For more information about Cytyc UK Limited who have provided the testing equipment, see www.cytyc.com or telephone Sharon Baverstock on 01256 761039.

For further press/media information contact: PR & Communications Department, Box 53, Addenbrooke's Hospital, Cambridge University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, Hills Road, Cambridge CB2 2QQ; Tel: 01223 274 433; Fax: 01223 257 143; Minicom: 01223 274 604.