HAVING spent past year being treated for breast cancer, I agree with some of the points raised by Susan Jaleel (HAS, March 2).

I was seen both at Darlington and Bishop Auckland as the team work between the two.

Bishop Auckland General is beautiful and underused.

The staff there are amazing, particularly the nurses on the Mara ward who administer chemotherapy, and who, I'm sure, aren't paid enough for the responsibility of the job they do.

Darlington hospital feels dirty and neglected and I've experienced the 'boob cupboard' as I call it.

Having said that, my consultant and my nurse are such incredible people that I'd have happily have seen them in a shed. The skills of the staff at Darlington Memorial Hospital surely outweigh the surroundings.

Kathy Harris, Barnard Castle.