New treatment is being used at Norwich Hospital to shorten and improve cancer treatment. 

 The Norfolk and Norwich University Hospital have a new Surface Guided Radiotherapy (“SGRT”) technology in use along with a new Orthopaedic Centre. 

Alice Macdonald MP (Lab and Co-operative, Norwich North) visited the new state-of-the art centre saying it is “a singular demonstration of how advanced technologies can help strengthen our NHS.”  

The Orthopaedic centre has been developed with many of its own facilities including a same-day admissions unit, a 21-bedded ward, physiotherapy rooms, a pharmacy and much more.   

At full capacity, the centre will carry out around 2,500 orthopaedic cases a year for patients who need ankle, foot, hip, knee or shoulder operations.  

To help with this work, four new consultants – experts in hip, knee, shoulder and hand surgery, have been employed to bring the most innovative techniques to the team.  

Covid-19 has caused a backlog of patients needing treatment. According to the British Medical Association since August 2024 the waiting list for treatment in the UK stands at 7.64 million cases. 

There is hope this new centre and technology will relieve some of this stress. 

Macdonald welcomed it as a “singular demonstration of how advanced technologies can help repair our broken NHS.”  

The MP’s visit also included the radiotherapy department, where new SGRT technology has recently been rolled out and is designed to limit patient discomfort and treatment time.  

It works using light beams and cameras to create a 3D outline of a patient’s body to help radiographers make sure they are positioned to receive the x-rays to treat their cancer.  

Macdonald also went on to say, “NHS staff…are the backbone of our NHS working incredibly hard. 

Labour is developing a ten-year plan for the NHS working with -staff and patients. The three big shifts that the Health Secretary is focusing on are sickness to prevention, hospital to community and from analogue to digital.  

The groundbreaking radiotherapy systems and the new state-of-the-art Orthopaedic facilities on display… at the NNUH show how we can harness technology to improve patient care.”  

Image credit: Alice MacDonald MP