TD Mary Butler gets 'all-clear' after procedure to remove cancer from nose

Junior health minister's skin cancer first appeared like a spot that would not heal

Mary Butler confirmed the news on Twitter, saying she was 'blessed'. Picture: Collins

Junior Health Minister Mary Butler has received the all-clear following a procedure to remove cancer from her nose.

The Waterford TD and Minister of State for Mental Health and Older people confirmed the news on Twitter, saying she has got the all-clear.

She said: "This is one of the good days, got the all-clear, all done, no further action required. I’m blessed."

Ms Butler told the Irish Examiner last month that she had a procedure in June under local anesthetic to remove cancer from the bridge of her nose but it wasn’t successful. 

She underwent a second procedure in late September and returned to Leinster House in the last two weeks.

Ms Butler had been awaiting an appointment to see a dermatologist, having been referred by her GP in January.

However, while representing the Government in Brussels on St Patrick’s Day this year, an Irish doctor was among a group she met and asked her if she realised she had a basal cell carcinoma on her nose.

Ms Butler said the skin cancer appeared like a spot on her nose that would not heal, adding it formed as a result of sun damage in earlier years.

Skin cancer is the most common cancer in Ireland, with over 13,000 new cases diagnosed every year.

The National Cancer Registry of Ireland (NCRI) expects this number to double by 2040.

"The importance of a good sun care regime has never been so important now with skin cancer the most common cancer in Ireland," Ms Butler told the Irish Examiner last month.