Referral from Australia

It is not often Australian patients are referred to New Zealand, but next week an Australian patient will be treated in Dunedin for a rare form of cancer.

Health Minister Tony Ryall, at Dunedin Hospital yesterday, said New Zealand hearts would ''sing'' at the thought of Australians treated here, rather than the other way around.

Because of an equipment breakdown in Melbourne, the patient had been referred to Dunedin for a rare form of eye melanoma.

Dunedin is the national provider of stereotactic radiosurgery, a form of which is used to treat the eye melanoma. Using a linear accelerator to treat eye melanoma is performed in just six centres worldwide.

Radiation oncology clinical leader Shaun Costello told the Otago Daily Times the hospital expected a small number of Australian patients with the rare condition, until early next year, when the Australian equipment would be back up and running.

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