A SUPERMARKET is giving away some of its freezer bags to help people with breast cancer.

Tesco is supporting patients undergoing radiotherapy at Colchester General Hospital by giving them a freezer bag to keep their gowns in.

Julie Arthur, fundraising officer for the Colchester Hospitals Charity, said she was grateful for the support and said the freezer bags were important.

She said: “Breast cancer patients who undergo radiotherapy treatment are given a specially designed gown to try to preserve as much dignity as possible.

“These patients have to attend the hospital for treatment every day for a number of weeks, however, they only wear the gown for a short period of time each day.

“It was obvious to radiotherapy staff that laundering these gowns on a daily basis was quite costly to the hospital.

“They came up with the idea of keeping the gown once issued to the patient for them to use during their entire treatment.”

The only way this initiative could work was if the patient was the only person coming into contact with the gown due to strict health and safety and infection control measures.

Staff came up with the idea of the patient placing their gown in the sealed freezer bag, which is numbered and kept in a safe please until their next round of treatment.

The sealed bag is then placed in the changing room ready for the patient when they arrive for their appointment.

The branches of Tesco at The Hythe and in Highwoods in Colchester were keen to get on board.

Jo Clarke, community liaison for Tesco Hythe, was delighted the store had been asked to help, saying the store had helped the hospital a lot in the past.

She said: “We have got an excellent relationship with the hospital and have worked together with them on many projects.

“It seemed only right we supplied them with the bags as it will save the hospital a lot of money.

“It will be really good for the patients to have their own gown, and we have the resources to help them.”

The stores have between them given a six-month supply of freezer bags, but both have said they will keep the initiative going for as long as the hospital needs the support.

According to the Breast Cancer Care charity, breast cancer is the most common cancer in the UK, one person is diagnosed every ten minutes.

One in eight women in the UK will develop breast cancer in their lifetime.

Colchester General Hospital is trying to make the radiotherapy experience as comfortable as possible for its patients.

Staff hope this will happen with patients being able to have their own therapy gowns.