STAFF and supporters at Southampton’s university hospitals will celebrate the development of a new £5 million support centre for cancer patients at an event today to coincide with World Cancer Day.

Maggie’s Southampton, close to the radiotherapy building at Southampton General Hospital, will provide practical, emotional and social support for people with cancer and their family and friends, with final preparations for the start of construction now underway.

The organisation’s first centre opened in Edinburgh in 1996 and, since then, Maggie’s has continued to grow, with 20 centres at major NHS cancer hospitals in the UK and abroad and an online alternative.

The oncology centre at University Hospital Southampton NHS Foundation Trust (UHS) sees more than 5,000 people with newly-diagnosed cancer every year.

It is estimated Maggie’s Southampton will see approximately 20,000 visits each year from people of all ages and with any type of cancer with professional staff on hand to offer the support people need.

“It will be fantastic to have this centre within the hospital grounds where it will provide patients with some excellent additional services in such close proximity to their place of treatment,” said Dr Carol Davis, lead consultant in palliative medicine at UHS.

“I’m particularly excited about the support that Maggie’s can give to patients and families facing complex decisions about treatment and care.”

Gemma McKnight, fundraising manager for Maggie’s Southampton, said: “We are delighted to be bringing Maggie’s to Southampton.

“Our centres are places to find practical advice about benefits and eating well, where qualified experts provide emotional support, to meet other people or somewhere where you can simply sit quietly with a cup of tea.

“Being built in the grounds of Southampton General Hospital directly next to the oncology department, which is a leader in cancer research and a global centre of excellence, Maggie’s will complement the cancer treatments and research taking place at the hospital.”

The Southampton centre has been designed by internationally‐renowned architect Amanda Levete CBE.

Maggie’s is currently fundraising for the remaining £1 million required to cover the cost of the build and running of the facility, with £140,000 recently donated by the Barker‐Mill Foundation.

For more information on the centre or to make a donation, visit https://www.maggiescentres.org/our-centres/maggies-southampton/.