Fears over lack of firm timetable for radiotherapy services in Waterford

RENEWED calls have been made for a timetable for the provision of long-awaited radiotherapy services at Waterford Regional Hospital.

A report leaked at the weekend indicated that it could be eight years before a government plan to provide a complete nationwide network of radiotherapy services for public cancer patients is finally delivered.

According to Labour TD Brian O’Shea, public cancer patients across the southeast “will continue to suffer and even more will die” because of the delays in delivering complete services to the region.

The nationwide plan was announced by Health Minister Mary Harney two years ago when it was envisaged the plan would be delivered for hubs by 2011.

However, that delivery date has now been pushed out to 2015, prompting Mr O’Shea to accuse the Government and the Health Service Executive of “just muddling around” on the issue.

“This is a basic requirement for patients. Cancer is a major killer in our society.” He called for “direct answers now” from the minister on a definite timeline for the delivery of this service.

The plan announced by Ms Harney in 2005 involved the provision of 23 additional linear accelerators (the equipment that delivers radiotherapy) to increase the capacity to provide treatment at four large centres in Dublin (two), Cork and Galway, backed up by satellite centres in Waterford and Limerick.

According to mayor of Waterford Mary O’Halloran, “mass confusion” abounds in the area following confused signals on the issue of radiotherapy, oncology surgery and chemotherapy in WRH.

She called on Ms Harney to make “a clear and immediate statement” on the timescale for providing the services.

“Waterford Regional Hospital serves a region of over 460,000 people and there is no need for me to revisit the long campaign for the full suite of cancer treatments and services to be available to patients at that location,” said Ms O’Halloran.

An interim measure is in place at the UPMC Whitfield Cancer Centre but the mayor said that international preference was for all treatments to be available at single centres of excellence, “which is what WRH was promised”.

She also expressed fear that the breast cancer screening promised for November might be delayed.