A cancer sufferer who has been saved thanks to a "miracle treatment" is campaigning for it to be made available in Leicestershire. Dave Harris was diagnosed with the disease three times, and went through gruelling radiotherapy treatment and a major operation. When he was told his prostate cancer had returned in 2006, he was recommended to have a new type of treatment called HIFU (High Intensity Focused Ultrasound) at Derby Hospital.

The 60-year-old was admitted for the treatment - which uses ultrasound waves to destroy cancerous tissues, by increasing their temperature - in July last year, and was back at home the next day.

His prostate specific antigen (PSA) levels, for which the normal range is zero to five, immediately dropped down to zero - the first time since he was diagnosed first time round in 2001.

It marks the end of 12 years of worry for Dave and his wife Pat, 58, who is also in remission from breast cancer, for which she had to have a mastectomy.

The couple, who live in Wigston, are now hoping the treatment will be introduced in Leicester.

Dave said: "I feel great now. I'm completely pain free - I was in a lot of pain all the time before. All the family are over the moon.

"The HIFU treatment was amazing and the nurses at Derby were brilliant. They were always there for you.

"I had never heard of HIFU treatment before but I feel great now. I've not had any problems since.

"We can't praise The Derby Hospital or the HIFU treatment highly enough. We had complete trust in everybody."

Pat said after they both had gone through weeks of radiotherapy, she was amazed to discover the HIFU treatment only lasted for one day.

She said: "People in Leicester just don't know about HIFU but it's like a miracle. We just want people to know how good it is.

"With cancer, no-one ever gives you the all-clear for definite, because there's always the possibility it could come back, but we're both OK now."

Doctors at hospitals in Leicester and Derby are now in talks about the possibility of introducing the treatment here.

A spokesman for UK HIFU said: "Surgeons in Leicester are hoping to provide the service. Leicester has very forward thinking hospitals and provide all other types of treatment for prostate cancer. They are hoping to start clinical trials soon, for men who are in a similar position to Mr Harris."

Leicestershire's Prostaid charity is currently fund-raising to pay for the trials.

Masood Khan, consultant urological surgeon at Leicester General Hospital, will be leading the treatment if it comes to Leicester.

He said: "We are hoping to be one of eight centres in the UK to have HIFU. If it is found to have an advantage, it would be ideal because it's a day procedure and there's no surgery involved.

"The problem is funding, because for each case, we're looking at about £4,000 or more."