Government fails to set date for cervical cancer screening service
A young mother is now dying because her smear test was misread at a time when the cancer could have been completely eradicated.
The Irish Cancer Society (ICS) says her case underlines the need to introduce the long-promised programme that will save more than 60 women's lives every year.
Janet Donnelly, 38, from Cabra, Dublin, who has an eight-year-old girl, settled her High Court action against the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland for just under €500,000 this week.
Her brother, Sam, said she never missed a smear test: "So, of course, we realise the importance of having a national screening programme."
The test costs €55 but is not covered by the medical card.
The ICS argues that to achieve an 80% reduction in cervical cancer in the Irish population there must be an organised programme where women in the relevant age group are invited for screening every three to five years.
One medical expert yesterday said that as many as 60 of the 78 women who on average die each year in the Republic from cervical cancer could be saved if a screening programme being tested in the mid-west was rolled out nationwide.
Dr Marian O'Reilly, who has been directing a cervical test programme for the past five years in the mid-west, said it must be extended to all parts of the country.
Dr O'Reilly said Irish women fared less well than women in Britain where a screening programme was introduced in 1988.
Dr O'Reilly said: "Ten years ago the age-standardised incidence rate for Ireland was 9.5 per 100,000 compared to 13.9 per 100,000 in Britain.
Despite the difference in incident, mortality was almost the same in both countries - 4.6 in the Republic compared to five per 100,000 in Britain, indicating that Irish women were being diagnosed with cancer at a later stage when medical intervention was less likely to achieve a cure."
The ICS is to raise the matter with Health Minister Mary Harney when they meet in February. More than a week ago the ICS met with the Minister of State at the Department of Health, Brian Lenihan, and one of his officials said it would cost €25 million a year to implement and maintain the programme.
SOME of the reports that recommended the introduction of a nationwide cancer screening programme.
* 1988: Interim report of Department of Health Working Party on Cervical Screening.
* 1992: Report of Department of Health working party on cervical screening.
* 1996: Report of the Department of Health Cervical Screening Programme and National Cancer Strategy.
* 1999: Interim report of the National Advisory Group on cervical screening.
* 2003: National Health Strategy says phase one of cervical screening programme is being implemented in the Mid-Western Health Board and will be extended to all areas.
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