AFTER years of hard work and commitment, Taunton’s dedicated cancer unit opened its doors to the public this week in 2009.

Hundreds of people crowded into the state-of-the-art Beacon Centre at the town’s Musgrove Park Hospital for its open day on Wednesday, May 6, 2009.

The centre opened to patients on May 11, making Taunton a centre of excellence in Somerset for cancer services and ending the need for patients to travel to Bristol for their planning and radiotherapy treatment.

Beacon Centre directorate manager Babette Fuller said: “The turn out for the open day was brilliant. I spoke to a few people who asked if it met our expectations and I said it’s exceeded them.

"We are all very sensitive to our environments and I believe we’ve got the right balance of professionalism, confidence and reassurance in this building.

“We’ve also got a workforce that will deliver high quality care that complements the beautiful building we are in.

“To have the centre finally ready for opening is absolutely excellent. It has been years in the planning and everybody is overwhelmed and overjoyed.”