Midlands cancer patients let down by government inaction – Clarke
Sinn Féin TD for Longford Westmeath, Sorca Clarke, says cancer patients across the midlands are facing unacceptable delays in diagnosis and treatment, as projections show cancer cases could double by 2045 compared to 2015 levels.
Hospitals serving the midlands, including the Midland Regional Hospital Mullingar, Midland Regional Hospital Portlaoise and Midland Regional Hospital Tullamore, are operating under sustained pressure, while patients requiring specialist radiation therapy depend on services delivered through the St Luke’s Radiation Oncology Network, including St Luke’s Hospital, Rathgar and St James’s Hospital.
Teachta Clarke said: "Hundreds of patients across the Dublin and midlands region are waiting beyond recommended timeframes for a colonoscopy and radiation therapy. While some midlands hospitals have managed to keep numbers lower than the national average, others are seeing worrying delays that risk later diagnoses and poorer outcomes.
"With bowel cancer diagnoses expected to rise sharply in the coming decades, the government cannot continue to ignore bottlenecks in endoscopy capacity.
"Overcrowded units, cancelled procedures and insufficient staffing are putting lives at risk. Access to radiation therapy is also falling short of national targets.
"A large proportion of radiation therapy machines nationwide are at or beyond their recommended lifespan.
"Midlands patients are often travelling significant distances for radiation therapy. The least they deserve is modern, reliable equipment and treatment within safe timeframes.
"There is no point investing in buildings and machines if we do not have the workforce to operate them.
"The staffing shortfalls in radiation therapy and endoscopy are well documented. Government must act decisively to expand training places and improve retention.
"People in the midlands have the same right to timely cancer care as anyone else in the state. We need transparency, investment and political urgency, not excuses."