DEIRDRE O'CONNELL,
Madam, - Europa Donna Ireland, the Irish Breast Cancer Campaign, is very concerned to read the report (The Irish Times, February 17th) that there is to be a further three-year wait for radiotherapy facilities to be made available in Galway. For a number of years we have been assured that this unit would be ready by 2003 and the need to advertise in good time for appropriate staff was signalled well in advance.
Frankly, we cannot understand how keeping such a unit empty can be justified, while patients have to travel to Dublin - or, as many do, go without radiotherapy altogether.
As regards breast cancer, this is a further blow to many women around Ireland. Europa Donna Ireland very much welcomes the extension of BreastCheck, the National Screening Programme, to counties Carlow, Kilkenny and Wexford. However, the programme is very far behind what was promised some years ago and we want to see a timetable for its roll-out to the rest of the country. We believe that, included in this timetable, should be the widening of BreastCheck to include women between 64 and 69. The necessary hospital beds and treatment facilities (including radiotherapy) should also be put in place.
Around 1700 women are diagnosed with breast cancer and over 600 women die of breast cancer every year.
Cancer is a very common disease and it is time we faced up to the investment required to deal with it. - Yours, etc.
DEIRDRE O'CONNELL,
Chairperson,
Europa Donna Ireland,
Dublin 8.