The All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) is India's first public hospital to start plaque brachytherapy facility for the treatment of eye tumours, a statement said on Sunday.

The facility is a form of local radiation delivered to the eye through a radioactive device which is attached to the eye for a temporary period of time.

The facility at the Rajendra Prasad Centre for Opthalmic Sciences will treat children suffering from a type of cancer called Retinoblastoma and adults who suffer from melanoma.

"Both the cancers are life threatening, and plaque brachytherapy can help to save not only the life of the patient, but also the vision," the statement said.