Cathy McGowan (Indi, Independent) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Wednesday, 15 November was a very special day for my region, with the opening of the $65 million Albury Wodonga Regional Cancer Centre. It was the culmination of a community campaign that began in August 2010 when 1,400 people, clad in yellow ponchos and united in the shape of a heart, gathered on the banks of the Murray River in Wodonga to seek funding for a cancer treatment centre on the border. On Wednesday, high-profile cancer centre campaigner Eric Turner took centre stage, and we were so proud to acknowledge his work. I acknowledge also the work of Jenny Black, the founder of the border cancer support network, and Brave Hearts on the Murray. I acknowledge the work of Dr Craig Underhill, Director of Oncology at Albury Wodonga Health, who first highlighted evidence of a growing gap in cancer survival rates between rural and metropolitan areas. He really played a leading role in getting the centre established. To Lou Lieberman, chair of the board, and all the staff of Albury Wodonga Health: we know how hard and how long you have worked, particularly to balance the idea of a regional cross-border centre, including New South Wales Victoria and the Commonwealth, and make it work. Congratulations and enormous appreciation go to the volunteers. The centre at Albury-Wodonga Health is operated with a public-private partnership with Ramsay health and Genesis Care. Thank you everybody. I really appreciate your work.