A fault in the radiotherapy machine at Sir Anthony Mamo Oncology Centre has forced the government to send cancer patients to a Rome hospital to continue their treatment.

Seven of the more urgent cases will be transported to the Italian capital on Tuesday, with others to follow on Wednesday.

The crisis developed after a fault with the linear accelerator machines that provide specific treatment to these patients.

It is now known how long it will take for the machine to be repaired. Until then, the patients are being assessed to establish the urgency needed for their treatment.

The government will be paying for the travel and accommodation of these patients and an accompanying person.

In a statement on Monday, the government said that technical faults in the linear accelerators of the Sir Anthony Mamo Oncology Hospital, which developed over the weekend, led to the temporary suspension of the radiotherapy service. 

The Ministry for Health has set up an internal inquiry board to establish what led to these faults, in light of the fact that this is the first time that such a technical fault has occurred.