Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I have been fully truthful and open on this issue since I became aware of it and wanted to continue in that vein tonight but what I was told of this evening is as Deputy Donnelly correctly outlined. I had been told, and I believe most Members of this House would have understood, that CervicalCheck was notified of all cases of cervical cancer by the national cancer registry. I have said to this House consistently that CervicalCheck has audited all cases of cervical cancer of which it is aware. That is true, but what is now emerging is that there are cases of cervical cancer known by the national cancer registry that are not known by CervicalCheck. This has literally come to light from the serious incident management team's work. That is the team we sent in to CervicalCheck to get to the bottom of all these issues on Friday. I do not want to put out specific figures because, quite frankly, I do not know them but the figures Deputy Donnelly has presented sound about right based on my knowledge of the prevalence of cervical cancer in this country on a yearly basis. However, that comes with a major caveat that I have not been given any figure in regard to the number.

I need to say, however, because Deputy Donnelly's point about not causing unnecessary fear and concern above the level that is understandably already there is important, that these are women who know they have cancer. The State does not have an audit or a file on them it has not shared with them but because they were never passed on to CervicalCheck or were never with CervicalCheck, they were never subject to the clinical audit to which cases like Vicky Phelan's or others would have been subjected. They will now be included in the clinical audit, and I am aware that all the relevant agencies will appear before the Oireachtas health committee tomorrow, but I am sharing all of the information I have with this House, as I have it, right now.

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