Queen Alexandra Hospital gets two new CT scanners to help save lives
TWO new CT scanners at a hospital have been welcomed – by a patient who owes her life to one of the devices.
Queen Alexandra Hospital in Cosham now has two new computerised tomography scanners – better known as CT scanners.
It is hoped the new scanners, which produce high quality images with less radiation exposure, can improve the early diagnosis of cancers and other conditions.
And the first patient to be scanned on the new scanners was 69-year-old Lynne Cox from Denmead.
Lynne has to have six-monthly scans following treatment for cancer after twice battling back from the disease.
She was first diagnosed with the disease in 2013 when she was referred for a colonoscopy after an abnormal bowel screening test result came back. A check-up screening three years later then picked up a ‘spot on her liver’.
Lynne said: ‘The team has saved my life. When my journey began back in 2013 it came out of the blue and was a shock to my family. Having these regular scans and the support of the team gives me reassurance and is a great part of my wellbeing.
‘I am so thankful for the skill, knowledge and care of the NHS professionals watching over me.’
The new scanners were installed on Friday after the previous machines had become ‘outdated’.
Ben Ridge, CT cardiac lead at QA, said: ‘We are always looking for ways to improve the pictures that we take and using these scanners we can get even better pictures with even less radiation.
‘The scanners allow us to do things such as advanced heart scans, advanced lung imaging as well as faster scans for paediatrics.’
The state-of-the-art machines were purchased by Portsmouth Hospitals University NHS Trust (PHU) as part of national £200m government investment in new cancer equipment.
Lou Herron, acting CT and MRI superintendent at the hospital, added: ‘The project to replace two of our old CT scanners has been seven months in the making. The administration team, the scanning team and assistant team have all had to find new ways of working and learn new skills.
‘They have done this with great resilience providing first class care to our patients.’