AN East Lancashire doctor who has helped train hundreds of Indian health workers to spot the early signs of cervical cancer is appealing for help to expand her project.

Dr Mohini Vachhani, 55, of Padiham, is a gynaecology consultant with East Lancashire Hospitals NHS Trust and has been travelling to her birthplace, Mumbai, every few months since she set up a cervical screening centre offering specialist training for doctors and free treatment for patients.

Since then, she has led training sessions throughout Mumbai and Goa, passing on her skills to more than 200 gynaecologists. More than 900 patients have now been screened at her Mumbai clinic.

Now, she is appealing for help to buy a video colposcope — an instrument used to magnify and light the cervix to check for signs of cancer.

She said: “In India, things are done very differently, so we are able to use actual patients for demonstrations and hands-on training, and that means they get something British training doesn’t offer.

“But with a video colposcope I can place the images on a screen and show the whole group what they are looking for when they perform the procedure. The units cost about £7,000, which is a drop in the ocean for the NHS, but in India everything has to be paid for, right down to the wooden inspection splints, or even a fluid drip for a woman giving birth.”

Dr Vachhani has already won sponsorship from a number of medical groups.

Any businesses or individuals who would like to make a donation can contact Dr Vacchani on 01254 263555.