IMPROVED AND speedier scanning and diagnosis and rapid response treatments for testicular and gastrointestinal cancer are among the new services planned by Mercy University Hospital over the next three years, it was revealed yesterday.
The plan drawn up by the MUH’s fundraising wing, the MUH Foundation, is aimed at supporting the hospital’s drive to become a recognised centre of excellence for cancer prevention, diagnosis, treatment and care.
Consultant radiologist Dr Martin O’Driscoll revealed that with support from the MUH Foundation, the hospital’s early cancer detection and cure unit is acquiring two new CT scanners, a 64-slice and a 16-slice scanner, to replace the existing four-slice model.
Dr O’Driscoll said the existing four-slice scanner was carrying out 35 scans per day compared with a national average of 22 for similar type scanners, but with the new machines, the hospital will be able to offer speedier, safer and more detailed scans for patients.
“These new scanners will facilitate an increase in the number of cancer screenings that can take place at the Mercy, which will in turn help reduce patient waiting lists and provide faster better quality scan imaging that will improve diagnostic capabilities,” he said.
Consultant urologist Dr Paul Sweeney said the introduction of a rapid access clinic for testicular cancer, modelled on the hospital’s highly successful clinic for prostate cancer, is only the second of its type in the country and will also bring huge benefits.
About 180 cases of testicular cancer are diagnosed annually in Ireland, with the Mercy seeing about 30 of these, and while the incidence of the disease is increasing by about 5-8 per cent annually, it has a high cure rate of 95 per cent, so early diagnosis and treatment is vital.
“The new clinic will significantly reduce the traditional delays between initial diagnosis and treatment and in urgent cases, it will lead to a 24-hour turnaround between a first referral and access to the hospital with a fast-track, same-week operation if required,” he explained.
Consultant gastroenterologist Dr Martin Buckley said the establishment of a new early cancer detection and care unit for gastroinstestinal cancer was also a hugely positive step as it would allow speedier treatment for those who develop oesophageal and gastric cancers.
The new centre will host new radio- frequency ablation (RFA) equipment whereby a condition known as Barrett’s Oesophagus, which can be a precursor to oesophageal cancer, is effectively treated by the affected cells being burned off to ensure a return to healthy cell growth.
MUH Foundation chief executive Micheál Sheridan explained that the foundation, which has raised €4.7 million since its establishment in 2007, aims to collect a further €1.5 million this year to provide start-up capital funding for these innovative projects at the voluntary hospital.
