The Box Hill Hospital clinic opened on Monday 12 April and the new clinic at Yarra Ranges Health will open in the coming weeks. Angliss Hospital has been offering services for the last two years with great success.

Eastern Health’s Chief Nursing Officer David Plunkett says it is positive news that people living in Melbourne’s eastern and outer-eastern areas will now have greater access to this important service.

"These new clinics will help to strengthen our ability to sustain services in our hospitals. Importantly, patients are able to visit a local service avoiding the need to travel further and incur related out-ofpocket expenses," he said.

"Early detection and management provides better outcomes for patients and having these services available in our local communities enables doctors and health professionals to refer patients to lymphoedema services in their local area."

Lymphoedema is a chronic condition, with up to 1000 new patients with cancer-related lymphoedema in the eastern metropolitan region each year. Patients are treated with complex physical therapy tailored to their needs and people at high risk of developing lymphoedema can receive preventative care.

Dawn Jones has been attending Angliss Hospital’s lymphoedema clinic for the past 12 months and isdelighted that further services in Melbourne’s eastern region have become available.

"It is wonderful news, as people who have this condition will benefit from advice on how to better manage it – I have received excellent care including access to vital advice and equipment I needed," said Ms Jones.

Eastern Health lymphoedema practitioner, Maria Stirling, said the establishment of lymphoedema services in the east provides much needed relief for people living in the region.

"People who live in the Yarra Valley and the Dandenongs no longer need to travel to the city to access services and people undergoing treatment at Box Hill Hospital will have a clinic onsite," she said.

Media information: Ashlea Milner, Eastern Health Communications & Community Relations, ph 03 9895 4879.

*Lymphoedema is a chronic condition caused by the inability of the lymphatic system to adequately collect or drain lymphatic fluid. It can be due to a congenital abnormality of the lymphatic system (primary lymphoedema) or occur as a result of surgery, cancer treatment or in combination of other conditions. It usually affects the arms or legs but can affect other parts of the body. The condition can affect performance of everyday tasks such as walking and fitting into clothing, as well as being at greater risk to skin infections.