A TRAILBLAZING Basingstoke surgeon and his team have been honoured at a special event by the patients whose lives they saved.

Merv Rees pioneered the practice of liver resectioning – which treats cancer – when many medical professionals believed that it could not be done.

Last Friday, Mr Rees, colleagues and former patients commemorated the 2,000th liver resectioning at Basingstoke hospital at a unique get-together attended by many of those whose lives have been saved over the last 23 years.

One-hundred-and-sixty former patients and their partners travelled from all over the country to honour the surgeon and his colleagues, who have made Basingstoke the liver surgery capital of the UK.

Mr Rees and fellow surgeons Miss Fenella Welsh and Mr Tim John are acknowledged as leading experts in treating liver cancer. Mr Rees came to Basingstoke hospital in 1987, and was joined by Mr John in 1997 and Miss Welsh in 2005.

Mr Rees began pioneering the use of liver resectioning after learning about the technique during a trip to Germany.

The procedure is the surgical removal of a part of the liver to remove cancer. Cancer in the liver is usually a secondary cancer that has spread to the organ from a primary cancer in another part of the body. Resections of the liver, which can regenerate, drastically increase survival rates for patients.

The special party was organised by former patients Derrick Tyler, 63, and Stuart Rowsell, 74, who like so many patients say they owe their lives to Mr Rees and his team.

It was fitting that the event took place in The Ark conference centre – a special medical education and conference facility that was built in the grounds of Basingstoke hospital following a multi-million pound fundraising campaign spearheaded by Mr Rees.

Many of Mr Rees’ former patients have played their part in raising money for The Ark project – and more recently they have responded to another appeal that could also save lives.

In March this year, Mr Rees asked former patients if they would like to support a drive to raise at least £60,000 for bespoke new software that would allow patients notes and scans to be transferred from other hospitals to Basingstoke, speeding up the diagnosis process and potentially saving lives. He was overwhelmed as tens of thousands of pounds were donated in a matter of months.

A sponsored bike ride from Swansea to Basingstoke arrived just in time for last Friday’s celebrations and presented Mr Rees with a cheque for £2,000. The team were lead by Andrew Williams, 48, from Swansea, whose wife Kath, 42 was treated by Mr Rees.

The surgeon said that he was thrilled with the amount of money that has been raised so far, and he thanked his former patients for supporting the latest appeal.

Further donations were presented on the night, and the three surgeons also received gifts of cut-glass Welsh crystal which were custom-made and had been individually engraved.

Mr Rees said: “I am lucky to be working with such a great team and I’m so grateful to everyone who has contributed towards the fund for new equipment.

“I’m overwhelmed with all the kind words and support from everyone who came to the event. This job can be hard and emotionally draining, but it’s times like this that make everything worthwhile.”

He added: “I first discovered the possibility of liver resectioning when I went to Germany to explore the surgeries that were being performed over there.

“Even though lots of my colleagues thought that it would never work, I’m happy to say that it has been very successful.

“It is important, however, to remember the people who are no longer with us – those who did not make it. They are etched into the memories of myself, Miss Welsh and Mr John.”

Any donations to the latest appeal can be sent to The Liver Fund, C Floor Secretaries Office, North Hampshire Hospital, Aldermas-ton Road, Basingstoke RG24 9NA.