Martin Browne (Tipperary, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I also thank Deputy Cullinane for bringing this motion before the House. Every family in the country has been affected by cancer. We all know that early screening and diagnosis are crucial and can save lives. The current crisis has robbed us of time. For health reasons, services had to be reduced or cancelled. For people with a health condition they think might be cancer, this pandemic must have turned days into weeks and weeks into months. So far this year, fewer than 100,000 people have had cancer screening compared with over 500,000 last year. For this reason, it is vital that we do not delay in ensuring that the build-up in demand for screening and treatment be dealt with quickly and efficiently. Lives will be lost if addressing the backlog relating to screening and treatment is not made a priority.

Related procedures are already under great strain. For example, last month I was told that more than 1,000 people were awaiting various scope procedures at South Tipperary General Hospital alone. When it comes to the challenges relating to cancer screening and treatment, it is vital that our healthcare professionals have the resources to act quickly so that patients have the prospect of the best outcome, which is what this motion aims to do.

We are also asking for money to help in the context of what the Irish Cancer Society calls a chronic underfunding of the national cancer strategy. This has led to a lack of investment in innovation, new services and addressing the unmet needs of cancer patients. The historical underinvestment in health prior to the crisis to which Covid has given rise has made it harder to deal with the unexpected. Let us consider needs assessments in my constituency of Tipperary. Last month, 230 children in the mid-west area, including north Tipperary, had been awaiting needs assessments for over a year. A total of 106 children were overdue for the same service in south Tipperary. A total of 293 people had been awaiting occupational therapy appointments and 18 people had waited more than six months for child and adolescent mental health services in north Tipperary.

I am pointing out how historical underinvestment makes the system particularly vulnerable when a crisis is thrown into the mix. The Irish Cancer Society believes we are faced with a stark choice: either proper funding be provided or the pattern of underfunding will continue. The latter would see services and healthcare professionals remain overwhelmed, leading to the risk of worst outcomes for patients.

Sinn Féin calls for cancer care to be made a priority and that is why I am supporting the call for €20 million to meet the target set out in the national cancer strategy, €10 million to address missed cancer care caused by Covid-19, and a €10 million package to ensure that all screening services are restarted and all backlogs dealt with. I appeal to everyone in the Chamber to support the motion. It is too important to ignore.

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