The biggest donation ever received by the Royal United Hospital has enabled a campaign to build a new cancer unit to reach its target.
Designer and entrepreneur Sir James Dyson and his wife Lady Deirdre have donated £4 million pounds to the Forever Friends Appeal, paving the way for the pioneering new cancer centre to be built.
The money, which comes from their charitable foundation, has helped the appeal to reach a £5.5 million target, and will transform the care for cancer patients across Bath, north east Somerset and Wiltshire.
The appeal has now raised its target by £3 million, which will be used to fund extra facilities at the centre.
Sir James, whose career began in Bath with engineering firm Rotork, was inspired to support the Cancer Care Campaign after losing both his parents to the disease.
The bagless vacuum cleaner pioneer said: "My father died when I was nine, and my mother died when she was in her early 50s.
"Cancer is a terrifying and vicious disease.
"And we wanted to make this cancer centre the best it can be, to support every person diagnosed. Bath is our home and the base from which I have grown Dyson. This new cancer centre will use cutting- edge technology and well-considered design to improve the health of those it serves.
"We wanted to smash the fundraising target and help maximise the efforts of the public and other local donors to make this a real model cancer centre for district general hospitals around the country."
Lady Dyson said they were impressed with the support that would be offered to families.
She said: "When a person is diagnosed with cancer, the family is their support – but who supports them?
"This centre will not only help the patients but also offer that much-needed support to their friends and family members.
"We hope that this donation will be an incentive to the people of Bath to continue to raise as much money for the appeal as possible.
"Bath is a very close community.
"And we have been impressed with the fundraising efforts so far."
Appeal development officer Sue Tucker said: "This donation will enable us to vastly improve the patient journey for many hundreds of people in the future.
"We are incredibly grateful to Sir James and Lady Deirdre Dyson for their extremely generous donation."
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