THE breast unit at Worcester has finally opened its doors to patients and it's all thanks to you.

It's not unusual for people to cry when they walk through the doors of the Worcestershire Breast Unit Haven at 220 Newtown Road for the first time.

Only then do they see the spectacular results of their hard work and that sometimes dreams do come true.

Because, above all, the £1.8 million unit only exists because the people of Worcestershire made the campaign their own and dared to dream that such a thing was possible.

They had the tenacity and the will and the heart to see it through to the end during a long five-and-a-half year fight, to 'keep the faith' as one campaigner put it.

Consultant breast surgeon Steven Thrush had the ambition, the vision and the conviction to want more for his patients, a dedicated unit under one roof, an oasis away from the crowded clinics, the awkward prosthesis fittings behind a curtain in a cramped office and the drab, windowless offices where staff did the very best they could with what they had.

But ultimately it was the people of Worcestershire themselves - patients, not all of whom survived to see the unit open, and their families and friends - who made this vision possible by raising the £1.8 million that was needed.

The unit is served by 18 car parking spaces for patients, filtering out one layer of stress even before patients walk through the doors.

When they enter the unit they arrive into a bright, airy reception area suffused with natural light and decorated with a colourful mural which features images of the Cathedral, the Guildhall, the river Severn, the Hive and the Elgar statue, the work of Mr Thrush's artist brother Luke.

There is even an image of a thrush outside Mr Thrush's own office and a squirrel above one of the radiators, something which helps keep a tone of warmth and informality.

Indeed, it is these personal touches - the comfy chairs, the coffee machine and the artwork - which give the unit the comfortable and less clinical atmosphere which is so important during what can be a hugely stressful and traumatic time for patients and their families.

The Worcester News has been given an exclusive glimpse inside the unit ahead of all other media because of the key role we played in promoting the Worcestershire Breast Unit Campaign which we have supported since before its launch in October, 2009 when it was adopted as the newspaper's official charity thanks to then editor Kevin Ward.

Inside the unit are five consulting rooms, a nurse's room, a specialised prosthesis fitting room, a staff room and offices.

One of the rooms is the Jacqui Heal Room, what Mr Thrush calls an 'oasis of calm' in the unit, where patients can go to get away from everything for a moment.

It is named after Jacqui Heal, a popular specialist breast care nurse who died in July 2007.

A bench at the unit will also be named after Cherry Robinson of Osier Close, Worcester, chairperson of the Worcester Breast Cancer Support Group, a stalwart of the breast unit campaign and one of the original calendar girls, who died in October 2013.

This is one of the most touching features of the unit, the way it celebrates the lives of those who campaigned passionately for the unit but never lived to see it open.

Mr Thrush said the unit had several advantages over the old clinics which were spread out across various floors in the main hospital. This provides a comprehensive service under one roof and is more efficient service with patients getting results much more quickly.

He said: "Before we were just part of the hospital but now we have a unified centre.

"It is nice when you get positive feedback and when your peers come and say 'crikey, that's very good!'

"We have people coming from other units to have a look because they have done similar things and they want to see how we have done it.

"The way we are working with the Haven is unique.

"The success has come from people realising we need the unit. It has been driven by the people of Worcestershire.

"I felt we can make a difference. I'm in a very privileged position. I do a job I enjoy. I believe I help people and also want to do the best I possibly can."

The unit has state-of-the-art equipment, including new digital mammogram and ultrasound machines.

But patients themselves have already begun to take ownership of what is their unit with one donating a plant to decorate the reception area.

The hope is that a gardening group will maintain the landscaped grounds in which the unit is based, tucked away in a quiet corner of the Worcestershire Royal Hospital near the Charles Hastings Education Centre.

But for Mr Thrush the breast unit is a work in progress and he is constantly thinking about ways it could be improved to enhance the patient experience.

"I still want to make it better" he said.

He hopes a medicines garden can be planted at the back of the unit and to encourage wildlife to enhance the beauty of the site.

Mr Thrush said: "You look out of the window and you can see nature. Normally patients are just seeing a white wall."

All his staff are also based under one roof which means a more effective working relationship and more face-to-face contact with clinicians.

The building has been designed with input from patients.

The windows are one way glass to protect their privacy and dignity at all times.

Nicky Underwood, the campaign administrator, said: "I have met so many wonderful people over the last five a half years.

"It has not been easy for people to raise funds in the recent climate.

"But even through our darkest times when we had our worries people were still actively fundraising.

"We want people to continue to come with us. We have made it happen.

"Now let's keep supporting it and make it the best it can possibly be."

Mrs Underwood said it was the most rewarding project she had ever been involved with and very emotional for all those who had helped.

She said: "It is when people come in an see what they have helped to create, the tangibility of it. It always comes back to that old strapline of 'everybody knows somebody'."

Kevin Ward was the editor of the Worcester News when the breast unit appeal was launched in 2009.

Now Editor of the Newport-based daily newspaper the South Wales Argus, he has remained a patron of the appeal.

Mr Ward was part of the team that launched the appeal at the Sixways rugby stadium on September 30, 2009.

“I said then that being part of the appeal’s launch was important for me personally,” he said.

“My grandmother died from breast cancer when I was ten years old and she would have benefitted hugely from being able to use something like the breast unit.

“I was very proud to be asked to be a patron of the campaign and to make sure the Worcester News adopted the appeal.

"The campaign’s original cry to action ‘Everybody Knows Somebody’ was poignantly accurate in my case and I’ve no doubt it helped to ensure huge support from across the area.”

As well as clinical care the Worcestershire Breast Unit Haven will provide complementary therapies, free counselling to patients and their families, advice on lymphoedema management and nutritional and practical advice.