GENEROUS Droitwich residents helped raise hundreds of pounds to help buy a surgical robot to treat prostate cancer patients.

Customers at Morrisons, based in the St Andrews Centre, made donations to the Rory the Robot Campaign during in store charity collections on Friday, July 22 and Saturday, July 23.

The £1.6 million campaign will eventually see a state-of-the-art robot installed at the Alexandra Hospital in Redditch, which is the county’s centre of excellence for urology.

The Droitwich events were aimed at promoting the importance of early diagnosis, with men aged over 55 urged to go for a PSA test to detect early signs of an enlarged prostate.

Brian Wilkes, who was diagnosed with the disease last year, organised the event and said: "Early diagnosis of prostate cancer is vital, for 500 patients in Worcestershire are diagnosed with prostate cancer every year and approximately 2,500 men in the region are surviving prostate cancer at any one time."

Droitwich MP Nigel Huddleston turned out to support fundraising, along with Dr Veronica Wilkie of the Corbett Medical Practice and Paul Markall, from the Kidderminster and Worcestershire Prostate Cancer Support Group.

A series of fundraising bag packs have taken place across Morrisons stores in Worcestershire, with more lined up later this year.

Earlier this year, the Morrisons Foundation donated a whopping £25,000 to the campaign.

For more information about the Rory the Robot appeal visit worcsacute.nhs.uk/about-us/fundraising/latest-events-and-appeals/rory-the-robot/