A woman broke down in tears when her NHS operation was cancelled for the fifth time.

Diana Young was told by staff at the Royal Sussex County Hospital in Brighton that no bed was available.

But within hours of our reporter contacting the hospital, Mrs Young was offered treatment at a hospital of her choice by the Brighton and Sussex University Hospitals NHS Trust.

Mrs Young, 54, needs surgery to remove painful scar tissue from her bowel which was caused by a major operation 20 years ago.

She said: "I've got to the point where enough is enough. There are only so many times you can accept an operation being called off.

"It is affecting my life and my family. We seem to spend all our time building up for an operation and then it gets called off. Apart from having to cope with the pain, it is making me stressed and upset."

The problems began for Mrs Young in May 2001 when her GP referred her to hospital. She was told the waiting list for the operation was 18 months.

An appointment was scheduled for a week before she was due to go on a holiday that was already paid for so Mrs Young had to cancel the operation.

Further operations were scheduled for December, April, May and July but all were cancelled by the hospital.

The last straw came for Mrs Young, of Rushlake Road, Coldean, Brighton, when no bed was available for Monday.

She said: "I was so angry and upset. It is not just me who is affected by this.

"Earlier this year my son-in-law booked a week off work to look after my grandchildren while my daughter came to look after me after the operation but it was cancelled.

"I had my bag packed all ready to go in on Monday and it is still sitting in the hall."

Mrs Young, a former care worker, said she could understand emergencies had to be dealt with and she was also sorry for the elderly patients who were bed-blocking.

But she added: "A couple of times you might accept but now it is getting ridiculous."

A hospital spokesman said problems with high numbers of emergency patients, delayed transfers and staff shortages meant cancelled operations. Monday's operation was called off because the consultant was sick.

The spokesman said: "We are very sorry for the distress and inconvenience Mrs Young has been through."

A spokesman for the Brighton and Sussex University Hospitals NHS Trust said that anyone who was cancelled on the day of their operation should be given a date within 28 days for the operation or they could choose a hospital and a date.

Although she did not quite meet these criteria, the trust agreed that Mrs Young could be treated at the private Nuffield Hospital in Woodingdean.