Cervical cancer issue
Senator Colm Burke raised the cervical cancer controversy, welcoming a statement from the Institute of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists and stressing the need for careful handling and openness.
I want to raise an important issue-----
Comment on this
-----in relation to the cervical cancer issue. A statement was issued by the Institute of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists today which we should welcome. We need to deal with this in a very careful manner. We have to acknowledge Vicky Phelan and her family for bringing this to the fore and highlighting the difficulties she has gone through and what she has to face into in the future. It is wrong that it had to go down that road. It is also wrong that information which patients should have had access to was not provided to them. As someone who is in the legal profession, it is appalling to think that a senior person at a senior level in any organisation should deny extremely important information to people. It is also important, in raising this issue, that we identify the good work that has been done. More than 3 million smear tests have been done since the programme was put in place.
Some 50,000 people have had treatments. There has been a reduction by 7% every year in the level of cervical cancer. However, it is important to remember that 100 women a year are still dying from cervical cancer. That is 100 people too many-----