MEDICS at Inverclyde Royal who helped save a Port Glasgow gran’s life have received a cheque for £500 — and some original artwork.

Artist Maria Wallace Beston, who lives in the former Gourock Ropeworks building, hosted a special fundraising exhibition at her home to honour staff at the haema-oncology unit.

It comes after they diagnosed and treated a rare form of cancer — Hodgkin’s lymphoma — that the 77-year-old had, and which French doctors had earlier failed to spot.

Maria, who lived in Paris for 15 years, left her home there because she knew she was seriously ill but nobody could tell her what was wrong.

It wasn’t until she returned home and sought help from her Port GP that she was referred to the IRH, where medical staff were able to diagnose her condition and treat it.

Their lifesaving work allowed Maria to get back to doing what she loves best — creating new artwork.

In recognition of their efforts, she made 30 new collages and put on a special exhibition and sale.

Maria told the Tele: “I made £500 from donations and sold a dozen collages.

“One woman came up and took one of the smallest pictures and gave me £70 for that alone.

“People are so generous around here.

“I took eight pictures up to the hospital with a cheque and said ‘here, these are for you’ because the exhibition made a lot of money.

“They are a wonderful bunch and have been really good to me. It’s just like a wee club.” The gesture touched the hearts of the hospital staff, who will use the stunning artwork to brighten up the ward for patients and their families.

The money will be used to enhance the unit and buy or repair items like televisions, which are used by people while they are being treated.

Angela McDermid, senior charge nurse, said: “The pictures will go up on the walls and they will enhance the environment and make it a lot brighter.

“It’s a lovely gesture from Maria. The collages are all beautiful.

“The money is also fantastic and what we will use that for is again to make the place look a lot more comfortable, because people spend a lot of time here.”