Michael Healy-Rae (Kerry, Independent) | Oireachtas source

I thank Deputy Cullinane very much, and Sinn Féin, for bringing this terribly important motion before the House. There is not a person in this room, in this county or in this country who has not been affected by the horrible disease that is cancer. It is a major fight for everybody who gets cancer to survive, do their best to try to prolong life and beat it, unless it beats them. Tragically, many people lose that battle, but at the same time we have to work with our healthcare professionals who do so much to try to save lives. Over recent years, the methods of fighting this awful disease have improved and the outcome for many people is far more positive now than it was in the past. People are surviving cancers that were unsurvivable in the past.

I compliment a number of people, for instance, the Irish Cancer Society in County Kerry; the Kerry Cancer Society; all the people in the group that organises fundraising, whether that is Daffodil Day or other events; my very close friend in Killarney, Eugene O'Sullivan, and the great team of people who work with him every year in organising Daffodil Day in the town of Killarney; and all of the outreach people throughout the county. They are in Kenmare and all around the Ring of Kerry. Every one of them put their shoulder to the wheel on Daffodil Day to raise much-needed funds. That funding is used, first, for the Kerry to Cork Link bus. I thank the organisers of that who provide an invaluable service to people in the county I represent. They take sick people from their own communities on that journey to Cork for treatment.

The screening programme is so important.

With regard to the cancer link bus, if I were here for the rest of the night I could not compliment enough the people who drive it, organise it, seek sponsorship for it and fundraise for it because it makes a very tough and intolerable time tolerable. People make friends on that bus. It is an unusual thing to say but people going for cancer treatment enjoy the journey to Cork if at all possible because on that journey they meet friends in the same position as themselves. They are all in the same fight; they are all in it together. There are people who are so kind to them. I thank the healthcare professionals, the people who organise the bus and the fundraisers. Theirs is such an important job of work. I thank and compliment each and every one of them. Again, I thank Deputy Cullinane for his work and for bringing this most important topic before the House.

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