Doctor Anne cured patient suffering (9)
I believe the answer is:
endurance
'patient suffering' is the definition.
(endurance is suffering patiently)
'doctor anne cured' is the wordplay.
'doctor' indicates an anagram.
'anne'+'cured'='annecured'
'annecured' with letters rearranged gives 'ENDURANCE'.
(Other definitions for endurance that I've seen before include "ship bound for the Antarctic" , "Polar ship" , "Surviving" , "Ability to stay a difficult course, courage" , "Crude Anne (anag.)" .)