RETIRED Hampshire heating engineer Stan Thomas today welcomed the end of a postcode lottery that saw victims of mesothelioma in Hampshire like himself being denied a treatment that could improve their lives.

The National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) has now decided the drug Almita should be available on prescription for people suffering from the asbestos-induced form of lung cancer, overturning its original recommendation.

It could potentially extend their lives by a year and give them a better quality of life.

Stan, 69, of Totton, was diagnosed with mesothelioma 16 months ago.

He told the Daily Echo: "I spoke to my doctor about Almita and he said the local trust did not fund it although if you lived in Bournemouth or Scotland you would be okay. He said I did not need it then but, if and when I do need it, it will be nice to have the opportunity to take it."

Mr Thomas, who worked for 38 years in the heating trade, collapsed in December 2005 after suffering from chest pain. He said: "It was a shock when I was eventually diagnosed with mesothelioma. I asked the consultant at the hospital what sort of timescale I might have and he said it could be weeks, months or years. It is like facing the gallows"

Diane McLellan has been campaigning with her sister Lynne Squibb for Alimta to be made more available after their father Dave Salisbury died from mesothelioma.

"We tried to get Alimta for him and even got his MP involved but sadly we were unable to get him the treatment," explained Diane.

The sisters set up HASAG - Hampshire Asbestos Support Awareness Group - to campaign on behalf of sufferers and their families.

"This decision will make a huge difference to their lives.

"In 45 per cent of cases tumours will respond and in 80 per cent of cases there will be an improved quality of life," she said.

Hampshire has a huge number of mesothelioma cases due to the use of asbestos in years gone by in the shipyards, railway works and other local industries.

It takes years after exposure to asbestos for mesothelioma to develop, so people exposed to asbestos before its gradual withdrawal from the 1970s onwards are only now beginning to show symptoms of the disease.

In 2004 over 1,600 people died from mesothelioma in the UK but the peak in numbers won't be reached until around 2015 when 2,500 new cases are expected.