Thousands of readers of This Is Essex and its partner the Evening Gazette have backed our campaign to get a cancer centre of excellence in Colchester.

And now a petition carrying an incredible 25,000 signatures has been presented to the House of Commons. The campaign was launced by the Gazette in April.

The petition states:

"The petitioners request the House of Commons to urge the Secretary of State for Health to do all in his power to ensure that cancer treatment services continue to be provided in the town and that a cancer centre of excellence be built in Colchester."

Gazette editor Irene Kettle presented Colchester MP Bob Russell with the petitions on the steps of our Colchester office just before he travelled to the House of Commons.

And last night Mr Russell took the campaign to Parliament.

For more information abour the campaign and a link to its website, click here The action was launched after it was announced that the eighth review of cancer services in the area in 18 years was due to start.

Fears were fuelled about the future of highly-regarded locally-based services. The review will look at services in Chelmsford, Colchester and Ipswich.

The lives of thousands of cancer patients and potential sufferers living on the coast will be affected by the outcome of the review.

If cancer services are improved farther afield, rather than in Colchester as previously promised, it could mean sufferers and their families facing long and tiring journeys for treatment.

We do not want to let that happen. Gazette readers in Colchester have overwhelmed us with their support.

Tens of thousands of readers - including many who signed petitions at Tollgate Sainsbury's and those inspired by Great Tey resident Ed Atwell's battle against cancer - have so far pledged their names to the campaign.

Health chiefs in Suffolk and Essex say they want to create a specialist cancer centre covering hospital sites in Colchester, Chelmsford and Ipswich.

No decisions have yet been made but the result of the review should be known in March next year.

Keep sending your petitions and pledges of support

The petitions are also being presented next month to Prof Reg Hall.

Prof Hall has been appointed by the Eastern Region of the NHS to chair a steering group to review cancer services in north and mid Essex.

Its conclusions will be considered in September and a blueprint for services in Essex and Suffolk will be known the following month.

Please make sure petitions and pledges arrive at: Evening Gazette, 43 North Hill, Colchester, CO1 1TZ - by Monday August 16. They will be presented to Prof Hall on August 17.

Converted for the new archive on 19 November 2001. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.