€2m in funding needed to extend lauded nurse helpline for cancer patients 

Mary Gardiner, from Bishopstown living in Tralee, said without her oncology nurse in Tralee, it would have been a much harder and more negative experience

Some €2m is urgently needed to increase access to a nursing helpline answering cancer patients’ queries at home instead of relying on emergency departments, the National Cancer Control Programme (NCCP) said.

One cancer patient in Tralee described the nurse there as “an angel without wings”, while data shows almost one in three patients who contact the service can be safely helped remotely.