THE Royal Berkshire Hospital has been targeted in a major hacking attack that has affected numerous NHS hospitals.

The trust's radiotherapy department has been hit by a ransomware attack locking staff out of key systems.

Trusts across the country have been targeted by the scammers at 3.30pm this afternoon.

A Royal Berkshire Hospital spokesman said: "It seems we have been affected but we are unsure of the scale yet.

"We have some patient clinics over the weekend but the doctors have a tried and tested backup with paper.

"It doesn't at the moment affect clinics for the weekend although there may be some delays as we go to the paper system.

"We have a potential issue with some of the phones connected to the NHS England system."

Fortunately for those in East Berkshire, Heatherwood Hospital and Wexham Park are unaffected. 

James Taylor, spokesperson for Heatherwood and Wrexham Park, said: "Everything is up and running as normal and we have no indication anything is awry. 

"Our IT and service team have been alerted and we have got the message out to staff to make sure they are extra diligent."

Some 16 organisations have had files locked by the 'Wanna Decryptor' malware, demanding a $300 ransom for them to be returned.

Ambulances have been diverted and patients warned to avoid some A&E departments as doctors have had to resort to using paper and pens to keep .

An NHS Digital spokesman said: "At this stage we do not have any evidence that patient data has been accessed.

"We will continue to work with affected organisations to confirm this.

He added the attack 'was not specifically targeted at the NHS and is affecting organisations from across a range of sectors'.

Hospitals and clinical commissioning groups in London, Blackpool, Hertfordshire and Derbyshire have also reported being hit in the attack.