Kerry woman on her deathbed being offered 'hollow sympathy', CervicalCheck case told
Joan Lucey has sued in relation to the alleged, misreading or misinterpretation or misreporting of her cervical smears taken in February 2011 and August 2011. File photo
A 73-year-old woman on her deathbed with terminal cervical cancer who has pleaded for mediation with the HSE in her legal action over her smear slides is only being offered “hollow sympathy”, the High Court has been told.
“All Joan Lucey is being offered on her death bed is sympathy. It is hollow sympathy,” her counsel told the High Court as she explained that the HSE won’t take up an invitation to direct mediation talks in advance of the action going ahead next week.
Mr Justice Kevin Cross today urged mediation to take place in the case of Mrs Lucey from Kerry. The judge said the parties should take instructions at the highest level to see if the case of Joan Lucey can be resolved through mediation.
Retired Kerry nurse Joan Lucey has sued the HSE and two laboratories and her case is set to go ahead before the High Court late next week.
The latest development comes after the widow through her lawyers in court made yet another plea to the HSE to attend mediation talks directly with her and said a mediator is on standby.
It follows a week after the grandmother first went public with her plight and as fears grow a large part of her case may die with her.
Joan Lucey who has terminal cervical cancer, the High Court heard today, is on her deathbed and it was very difficult to explain to her why the HSE won’t accept the invitation to sit down with her legal team and mediate the case next Tuesday. The HSE wants the other parties at the table as well.
“She is on her deathbed. It is simply cruel,” her counsel Oonah McCrann instructed by Aisling Maher of Cantillons solicitors told a remote court hearing.
Counsel added:
The court has previously heard the laboratories are baulking at engaging in mediation until a third-party issue has been resolved.
Ms McCrann pointed out today Mrs Lucey’s legal team has written to the HSE and the laboratories involved seeking confirmation that Mrs Lucey’s claim for general damages would survive her if she dies before the conclusion of her case.
Counsel said the HSE will only agree to give the confirmation if the other parties also agree.
Mr Justice Kevin Cross put the case in for mention before the court tomorrow to see if the matter can be progressed.
Joan Lucey (aged 73) Cooleen, Dingle, Co Kerry has sued the HSE, Clinical Pathology Laboratories Incorporated (CPL)with headquarters in Austin, Texas, USA and MedLab Pathology Ltd with registered offices at Sandyford Business Park, Dublin.
She has sued in relation to the alleged, misreading or misinterpretation or misreporting of her cervical smears taken in February 2011 and August 2011.
In February 2011, Mrs Lucey had a smear test which, it is claimed, was tested by CPL under the supervision of MedLab and this came back as negative with a recommendation for the repeat smear in six months.
It is also claimed that Mrs Lucey was referred to the Scotia Clinic, Tralee, Co. Kerry, on on April 29, 2011, where a swab came back as negative and she was advised she was HPV negative.
In August 2011, it is claimed Mrs Lucey had a repeat smear which was tested by the CPL under the supervision of MedLab and was reported as negative with a repeat smear recommended in a year.
It is claimed for the subsequent seven years Mrs Lucey had annual smear tests taken by her GP all of which were reported as negative . She also had a smear test and a HPV test in October 2018 which were reported as negative in May 2019. After that Mrs Lucey got a letter from CervicalCheck advising that she had completed her cervical screening.
In December 2018, Mrs Lucey began to suffer from fatigue and developed lower back pain in May 2019. She was later admitted to hospital for investigations and an MRI scan showed cervical cancer.
It is claimed that, notwithstanding undergoing regular smear tests as advised, cytological cell changes in Mrs Lucey were allegedly allowed to develop and spread unidentified, unmonitored and untreated until she was diagnosed with cervical cancer in July 2019.
All the claims are denied.
Clinical Pathology Laboratories (CPL) has also joined as a third party in the proceedings consultant obstetrician Dr Mary McCaffrey of The Scotia Clinic, Tralee, Co Kerry. CPL has claimed there was an alleged failure to assess or investigate Mrs Lucey when she attended the clinic on April 29, 2011, and it is claimed it resulted in an alleged missed opportunity to diagnose pre-invasive disease.
The claims are denied.
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