Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

On that subject, I fully understand and appreciate the difficulty in being 100% accurate. However, a major issue and controversy arose in respect of a look-back. In the case of a considerable number of look-backs, it was determined in the courts and elsewhere that the existence of cancer should have been identified in the first instance. It was not that it was identified but that it should have been. I realise that is a very difficult conclusion to come to, from a diagnostics point of view, but the courts came to that decision and medical evidence was adduced in court to the effect that on the look-back, there was evidence that cancer should have been recognised but that it was not recognised.

The other issue was that the patients in many cases were not informed. There was a lack of evidence and women had to suffer on for a considerable period without any knowledge of what their results were.