Communities in western NSW will be asked to sign a petition and Minister for Rural Health Fiona Nash lobbied to gain a cancer centre at Dubbo to address the region's "dire need for equitable access to health care".
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Concerned citizens will seek to rally people together to push for government-funded diagnostic and treatment services as part of current upgrades to Dubbo Hospital.
Parkes MP Mark Coulton said the people of his electorate did not have direct or easy access to necessary cancer services, and it was "something worth fighting for".
It was a cause the Rotary Club of Dubbo West had been highlighting, with Rotarian Lyn Smith previously saying the city's hospital served the largest geographical health district in NSW with more than 270,000 people.
With the campaign gaining momentum, on Thursday Mr Coulton hosted a meeting at Dubbo attended by local medical professionals, as well as government and community representatives.
"The meeting was very productive with everyone in attendance in fierce agreement that both diagnostic and treatment services for cancer sufferers are needed out here in order to properly care for the people of western NSW," Mr Coulton said.
He noted that under a redistribution of boundaries, the federal seat of Parkes covered almost half the land mass of NSW but "sadly... the people of this electorate do not have direct nor easy access to necessary cancer services such as PET scanning or radiation therapy".
"Particularly for our western communities, there is a dire need for equitable access to health care," he said.
As a result of the meeting the group will work to produce a petition that will be distributed right across western NSW.
"The purpose of this petition is to both raise awareness of the need for the regional cancer centre and to provide evidence of the support the community has for this centre," Mr Coulton said.
"The group will also continue to work with my office to secure a date when the Minister for Rural Health. . . will visit Dubbo and hear firsthand the need and support for this proposed centre.
"As I told the meeting attendees yesterday this is something we have to fight for.
"This centre is about the health and wellbeing of the people of western NSW; it is about our livelihoods.
"That is something worth fighting for."
Mrs Smith was present at the meeting and said when the petition was ready she would be contacting community groups once more to provide them with the document and asking them to spread it amongst their networks.
"I'm encouraged we have come up with some plans which involve the professionals, bureaucrats and community members who can all work towards this goal," Mrs Smith said.
