Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said, “Peta took great pride in the Labor Party’s role in the story of Australia’s public health system. It is so fitting that this wonderful addition bears her name.” Photo: X/@AlboMP.
In honour of the late Member for Dunkley, Peta Murphy, a new breast imaging suite at Frankston Hospital has been opened bearing her name.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and Victorian Premier Jacinta Allan accompanied Ms Murphy’s family to pay tribute at the same institution where she was treated for cancer.
Upon completion in around late 2025, the suite is expected to treat more than 35,000 additional patients each year. It’s intended to address the overwhelming demand for breast imaging services in the region, and reduce public institutions’ waitlists, such as at Monash Health in Clayton.
Victorian Minister for Health Mary-Anne Thomas said the new imaging suite would follow in the work of its honoree.
“Peta championed better breast cancer services and advocated for more work on early detection – this new imaging suite will help us do just that, broadening access for the people of Dunkley and surrounding communities,” Ms Thomas said.
It features 130 extra beds, new mental health and oncology spaces, expanded women’s and children’s areas, and 15 new operating theatres. The suite also encompasses mammography, ultrasound, biopsy, and localisation services for the Frankston and broader Mornington Peninsula communities.
Staff are expected to perform about 2400 mammograms annually, to support the 6.3 per cent of the region diagnosed with breast cancer every year. It will also offer internal and community-based referrals, so there’s no day-of-surgery transfers.
The State Government provided $4.5 million in funding for Peninsula Health’s first comprehensive public diagnostic breast imaging service, as part of its $1.1 billion redevelopment of Victorian health services for the Peninsula communities of Melbourne’s southeast.
Breast Cancer Network Australia (BCNA) Director of Policy, Advocacy and Support Services Vicki Durston said Peta Murphy was a strong advocate with BCNA and their network of people with lived experience of breast cancer in driving awareness for the need of this service.
“We are delighted to see this new facility funded by the Victorian Government in her name,” Ms Durston said.
