Oireachtas Joint and Select Committees

Wednesday, 22 October 2025

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health

Current Issues Relating to Health Services for Cancer: Discussion

2:00 am

Professor Risteárd Ó Laoide:

The second question was on the trials. What is important about the trials is that the Minister for Health ordered a review of clinical trials generally in Ireland. There is a report that is going to be published very shortly on an outcome of clinical trials. It was raised at the previous presentation. There are impediments to getting clinical trials in Ireland. I am very hopeful and confident that the plan that will be produced will put a national focus on this, and will show how we can bring trials in nationally rather than through each cancer centre, which really has been the bugbear in the context of the speed at which we can deliver clinical trials in this country. That plan is supposed to be launched very shortly by the Department of Health. It was chaired by Donal Brennan, and it was a clinical trials oversight group. We have seen interim recommendations and I think they will be very strong in strengthening our ability to deliver clinical trials in Ireland. It is important to say as well that the Mater hospital opened up a phase 1 clinical trials unit in the past year, which is another good step and represents progress in our delivery of trials in Ireland.