The Lord Mayor of York, Coun Peter Vaughan, and the Lady Mayoress, Coun June Vaughan, present the cheque to York District Hospital staff, from left, breast unit manager Sue Sims, senior radiographers Joanne Berry-Smith and Kathleen Sowden and consultant radiologist Dr Anna Murphy

The Lord Mayor and Lady Mayoress of York have expressed their gratitude to local people and organisations for the generosity that has helped them to donate over £20,000 to help improve breast cancer screening in the city.

Councillors Peter and June Vaughan handed over a cheque for £20,279.34 - the entire proceeds from their Millennium Ball last month - when they visited the breast screening unit at York District Hospital.

Their fund-raising effort surpassed all expectations, and has allowed the unit, which serves York and the surrounding area, to buy a piece of high-technology equipment, called a laser imager.

The Lord Mayor said the equipment was important because it speeded up the screening process, which was vital in combating a disease which one in 12 women will develop at some point in their lives.

The cause is one close to the civic couple, for the Lady Mayoress suffered breast cancer 18 years ago, and the Lord Mayor's mother was also treated for the condition and survived.

Speaking for himself and the Lady Mayoress, the Lord Mayor paid tribute to those who gave time, money and sponsorship to make the Millennium Ball, held at York Racecourse, such a success.

"We were pleased and amazed by all the generosity we had from a lot of individuals and a lot of organisations," he said.

"The outcome has been that we have able to help them invest immediately in equipment for the unit that will speed up the screening process for its clients."

The Millennium Ball is entirely separate from the Lord Mayor's two official charities for the year, which are the Alzheimer's Disease Society and the Variety Club of Great Britain, raising money for York children in need.

andrew.hitchon@ycp.co.uk

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