Chris Andrews (Dublin South East, Fianna Fail)

I am sure they were delighted. It is a difficult issue. The delivery of cancer treatment and radiotherapy services has been a priority for this Government and will continue to be so, which I certainly welcome.

Along with heart disease, cancer, as Deputy Calleary noted, affects almost everybody and scares people. Across Dublin, including Dublin South-East, people are being diagnosed and have family members who are being diagnosed with cancer. It is a huge shock when one receives that diagnosis.

Since 1997 and the implementation of the first national cancer strategy, more than €1 billion has been invested in cancer services nationally. Under the national development plan, this type of continued priority and major investment has continued. Investment of up to €415 million has been provided for within the new national cancer control strategy to fund the national plan for radiation oncology.

Radiotherapy is an integral part of cancer treatment. It is used for curative and palliative treatment and Government health policy has reflected this. Only yesterday, eight specialist cancer centres were announced. They will be located in each of the four HSE areas, will provide treatment services for all forms of cancer and will include radiation oncology services. Among the new specialist cancer services are two in south Dublin — one in St. Vincent's Hospital and the second in St. James's Hospital. This is clearly good news for those people in south Dublin and Dublin in general and I very much welcome this development.

St. Luke's Hospital was mentioned yesterday in this debate. It is obviously located in Dublin South-East so I am very aware of the challenges facing it and cancer service delivery. The primary concern of cancer treatment must be the patient, who must be put first. My understanding is that treatment requires a multidisciplinary approach. With many cancers, life-threatening complications can set in which require surgical facilities that are not available at St. Luke's Hospital. They are available at the main centres and will be available at the facilities in St. James's Hospital and St. Vincent's Hospital when they come on stream. Patients' interests are not best served in St. Luke's Hospital. Perhaps it is not politically correct to say this, but the reality is that we must put the patient first and look past short-term thinking. In the long term, cancer services from St. Luke's Hospital will be transferred in a planned way where the staff and ethos of the hospital will be transferred.

In the short term, urgently needed additional treatment capacity is being introduced at St. Luke's Hospital. This project is in the build phase with a start date of March 2008. This capacity will increase St. Luke's Hospital's radiotherapy capacity by 25% and is in addition to the replacement of existing treatment capacity which is reaching the end of its clinical life. This new replacement capacity represents an investment in excess of €13 million in St. Luke's Hospital.

It is a shame that the Opposition is willing to scare people, which is what it is doing. It is playing on people who are vulnerable, concerned and frightened about what the future holds for them. It is doing this in the interests of short-term political gain. That is the reality. The Opposition knows the facts in respect of——

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