Patients who receive chemotherapy treatment on Island will benefit from an advance in nursing capability.

The oncology services at Noble's Hospital are expanding.

Markie Chestnut has become the first oncology nurse at the hospital to complete training in a procedure which offers painless delivery of chemo drugs.

Markie has acquired the complex skills needed to insert a patient's PICC line – a semi-permanent intravenous line used to deliver chemotherapy treatments, which can last many months.

The procedure uses ultra sound technology to guide the siting of the line and the whole process is carried out under X-ray control.

Markie’s training marks the latest step in the development of a nurse-led acute oncology service at Noble’s and means all patients can continue to have their lines inserted locally, avoiding repeated ‘needles’ for their chemotherapy and ensuring their treatment is comfortable and safe.

Markie was presented with a framed certificate marking her success by Health and Social Care Minister David Ashford, in an impromptu ceremony on the oncology ward.

He said: "The number of people requiring specialist cancer care has grown rapidly over the last five years, both in the UK and the Isle of Man.

"The oncology nursing team at Noble’s has worked very hard to increase services locally to reflect this growth and to ensure many patients can receive their chemotherapy close to home.

"Markie’s skill set is a key development for our new nurse-led service and highly valued by the team, which hopes to further expand its services for patients with cancer in the future."