Every year more than 4,500 Leicestershire people are diagnosed as having cancer, a traumatic time for both patients and their families, but some help and comfort is at hand from a county specialist charity.

Coping with Cancer in Leicestershire was set up 20 years ago and now provides practical and emotional support to over 2,000 people each year.

One local firm which has stepped in to assist is Loughborough's medicines research company AstraZeneca R&D Charnwood with a £400 donation.

"Healthcare in its widest sense is important to AstraZeneca. The nature of our research is to discover and develop new medicines to treat the many diseases which still cause ill health for millions of people around the world. At the same time we try where we can to offer help to organisations such as coping with cancer so they can provide support to people in the county." said Gill Hilsdon, Public Relations Manager for AstraZeneca.

Russell Brickett at Coping with Cancer said: "We very much appreciate the donation from AstraZeneca. We are launching a campaign in the Loughborough area to get the charity better known and hope other companies, groups or individuals will follow AstraZeneca's lead. Anyone wanting to make a donation can contact me on 0116 223 0055."

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