A cancer hospital with room for 130 patients is on the cards for Benissa and funding has been received by a local business. The sum of 20 million euros has been donated to the Fundación Europea Contra el Cáncer (FECC) by a firm which prefers to remain anonymous.

It is expected that the hospital will be built in the Pla de Carrals area. Mayor Juan Bautista Roselló says the centre will have between 15 and 20 oncologists, a casualty department for emergency cases, an investigation unit for carrying out cancer research. Support will also be on hand, both practical and emotional, for both patients and their friends and families. Patients from all over the Marina Alta will be covered by the hospital.

Concerns have been raised by local authority figures over another planned hospitals in Benissa and a health centre, neither of which have come to fruition. However, the private donation means work can proceed on the cancer hospital as soon as the relevant planning permission has been obtained.