The Christie celebrates its third anniversary

As The Christie at Macclesfield celebrates its third anniversary, patients and staff have hailed a leap forward in cancer care and applauded recent innovations.

Patient appointments are up from 38,500 in its first year to 49,000 in 2024, and the number of staff members has increased from 55 to 85.

Centre Manager Daniel Holt said: “The Christie at Macclesfield has made considerable progress since opening. As a local Christie treatment centre, we are unique in providing radiotherapy, chemotherapy and haematology services under one roof. We can deliver a diverse range of cancer treatments, with patients benefiting from treatments that were previously only available at The Christie in Withington. Consequently, we’ve made it possible for local people to get life-saving treatment and compassionate care closer to home.”

Macclesfield was the first of The Christie’s 3 local radiotherapy centres to provide stereotactic ablative body radiotherapy (SABR) for a wide range of cancer types. SABR is very precise; patients receive a higher dose per session and, therefore, require fewer sessions overall. More than 357 patients have benefited so far, including Barrie Goodwin, age 82, a retired lorry driver from Chapel-en-le-Frith. In the autumn of 2024, Barrie had lost his appetite and was losing weight. His GP was concerned and referred Barrie for a scan.

Despite having no symptoms of lung cancer like a persistent cough or coughing blood, Barrie was shocked to hear that the scan had identified a lung tumour. Within three weeks, he had started SABR treatment in Macclesfield.

“The staff at The Christie at Macclesfield have been fantastic and very kind, like everyone in the NHS,” said Barrie. “I’m fortunate to have been seen quickly and know I am in safe hands. The Macclesfield centre is modern and bright, and much closer to home than Manchester.

Barrie’s daughter Dawn brings her dad to every hospital appointment, and having a local centre has made an enormous difference to her as she works around her dad’s treatments.

“Macclesfield is around 30 minutes closer and is much more convenient,” she said. “We park next to the centre, so get in easily and are back home quickly. It’s made a big difference to me and my dad.”

Since opening, The Christie at Macclesfield has developed the ability to provide concurrent chemo-radiotherapy for patients with gynaecological, brain and colorectal tumours. So far, approximately 21 patients benefited from 697 concurrent radiotherapy treatment sessions in Macclesfield, and more patients, including those with lung cancer, are set to benefit in 2025.

Patients receiving these combined therapies may need more support to manage side effects, which necessitates highly skilled clinical staff available on-site. To answer this, the centre has developed a team of Advanced Clinical Practitioners (ACPs), namely Sarah Welby, Laura Bradley, and Hannah Davenport.

ACPs are highly trained and come from nursing or other healthcare professional backgrounds. They provide timely and specialist care to support patients through treatment, particularly if they are struggling with cancer symptoms or treatment side effects.

The centre’s ACPs also supervise a trainee ACP (currently Rosie Swinhoe) and a radiotherapy review radiographer (Samuel Johnson), helping to foster the next generation of highly skilled medical professionals in the centre. ACP Laura Bradley said: “It is a huge privilege to support patients having their care and treatment closer to home in Macclesfield. The ACPs support a wide range of more complex treatments, rather than patients having to go to Withington. We also provide acute oncology support when attending patients are unwell or become unwell in the unit. This often avoids the need for a patient to go to A&E.”

Arthur Oarton, age 96, from Holmes Chapel, was diagnosed with skin cancer on his right ear (basal cell carcinoma) in 2019 and had a specialist kind of surgery (Mohs) to remove it in January 2020. The cancer returned twice, so Arthur’s consultant referred him to The Christie. A course of radiotherapy to the ear was agreed, and Arthur’s family requested this at The Christie at Macclesfield, as this was closer to home.

Arthur said: “I see Laura or one of the review team when I have any concerns or questions. They give me advice and help me manage the side-effects of my cancer treatment. They are incredibly kind and caring.”

Healthcare support workers play a vital role in patient care at Macclesfield and provide support across all services in the centre. Elaine Barber, who lives in Macclesfield, has been trained in making bespoke immobilisation equipment for radiotherapy patients. This frees up time for the radiographers and makes Elaine’s role more rewarding. “I’ve really enjoyed learning something new and find it incredibly rewarding to support our patients in this way,” she said.

Innovation and improving patient care drive all the staff teams at The Christie at Macclesfield.

Since the centre’s opening, there has been a significant increase in the number of systemic anti-cancer therapy (SACT) treatment deliveries for oncology and haematology patients. In January 2025, the treatment unit saw the expansion of blood transfusion and supportive care services to include blood cancer patients as well as the existing oncology patients. The service was previously provided by Macclesfield District General Hospital, and the project facilitated positive collaboration and multi-disciplinary working between the two trusts, working to achieve a service that maintained high quality patient care whilst improving continuity of care and increasing treatment capacity.

The Christie at Macclesfield continues to work closely with East Cheshire NHS Trust on both non-clinical and clinical services, including research and acute oncology, fostering a culture of collaboration and delivering joined-up services to continuously improve the health of patients in the area.

The centre also benefits from a dedicated pharmacy team providing support to all clinical teams. They too drive innovation, for example, by identifying which breast cancer patients are most likely to experience side-effects from immunotherapy so that adverse impacts can be minimised. The team also supports clinical research and provides pharmacist-led clinics for patients with chronic lymphocytic leukaemia to review their medication.

In haematology, frail patients with multiple myeloma can access extra support with nutrition, mobility, and medication reviews through the senior adult oncology team.

Since opening in 2021, the centre has been remodelled to accommodate the development of the service and to improve efficiency. CT scanner capacity has been increased by re-purposing a room to facilitate the making of immobilisation equipment. A new phlebotomy room will open in February 2025, providing two additional phlebotomy chairs to cope with increased demand, meaning 60 patients a day can be tested rather than 40 previously.

Tara Davies, Deputy Centre Manager, said: “Whether it be consultants, radiographers, nurses or administrative staff, The Christie at Macclesfield consists of a dedicated workforce who keep patients at the heart of everything they do. We’re proud of our centre and what it has achieved. Together, we look forward to a bright future.”

The £26m centre benefited from £23m of funding provided from The Christie Charity.