A mother of a terminally ill 15-year-old boy told a court yesterday that Dr Paschal Carmody told him he would cure him of cancer or at worst keep him alive.
At Ennis Circuit Court yesterday, Christina O’Sullivan said her son Conor was given six months to live by consultant oncologist Dr Finn Breathnach on June 27th, 2002, days before Conor’s consultation with Dr Carmody.
Ms O’Sullivan said she and her husband, Derek, and Conor travelled from Co Wexford to Dr Carmody’s east Clare clinic on July 9th, 2002.
Ms O’Sullivan said that they travelled to the East Clinic after meeting a patient of Dr Carmody’s, Mark Hadden, who suffered from liver cancer. Ms O’Sullivan said Mr Hadden was given three months to live and was alive six years on. She said this gave her great encouragement.
Conor suffered from a rare form of bone cancer, Ewing’s sarcoma, and Dr Breathnach told the couple that there was no further treatment.
Ms O’Sullivan said they never told Conor the stark news. She said: “Conor had his suspicions because he knew that Derek was crying but we never told him.” Conor died on November 13th, 2002.
Ms O’Sullivan from Granite Lodge, Gorey, Co Wexford, told the court that at the consultation with Dr Carmody, he told her that photodynamic therapy (PDT) was suitable for the form of cancer Conor had. Recalling the meeting with Dr Carmody at his clinic, Ms O’Sullivan said: “Dr Carmody put his arm on Conor and told him ‘I’ll cure your cancer and at the worst, if I don’t cure you of cancer, I’ll keep you alive’.”
‘Cloud nine’
Ms O’Sullivan said Dr Carmody explained that PDT involved the patient taking a liquid that would attach itself to the cancerous cells and a laser light on the body would kill off the cancers. Asked how she felt leaving Dr Carmody’s surgery, Ms O’Sullivan said: “I felt like I was on cloud nine because he said that he was going to be able to treat Conor.”
Ms O’Sullivan said she returned to the clinic for Conor to undergo the PDT by Dr Carmody’s colleague, Dr Bill Porter. She said she went to faith healers the same year with Conor along with visiting Christina Gallagher’s House of Prayer in Co Mayo.
Dr Carmody (64) is pleading not guilty to defrauding family members of two cancer patients of €16,554 at the clinic in Killaloe in 2001-2002.
Dr Carmody has pleaded not guilty to seven deception charges totalling €9,610 in relation to defrauding Derek and Christina O’Sullivan concerning the PDT treatment given under false pretences on dates between July and October 2002. He has also pleaded not guilty to obtaining by deception €6,944 from John Sheridan (58) of Kells, Co Kilkenny, in November 2001 through the administration of the therapy.
The trial continues.
