The £275,000 raised from Chai Cancer Care’s Manchester dinner will enable the charity to maintain its services in the city, as well as in Liverpool and Leeds.

More than 400 guests attended the dinner at the Hilton Hotel in Deansgate, at which Chai medical patron Dr Ian Ellis spoke of the “enormous value and benefit Chai gives to patients and their families”.

Chai client Michal Mocton gave a first-hand account of the charity’s support. “I once heard someone say that Chai was as important to their recovery as the chemotherapy,” she said. “At first I thought this was an exaggeration but really it’s the truth.”

Films were shown highlighting the scope of Chai’s work through the voices of clients of all ages.