Darragh O'Brien (Dublin Fingal, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Deputy for his questions and the points he has raised on this very important issue. He has been and continues to be a strong advocate for the expansion of clinical trials and of access to them. The Minister for Health has been very clear that he wants to double the number of clinical trials taking place in Ireland. Patients involved in clinical trials can, as the Deputy said, receive cutting-edge therapies, often years before they are widely available. Some patients can experience much better outcomes if the experimental treatment proves positive and effective. Trials can be empowering for patients and make a really vital contribution to medical knowledge and the development of new drugs and devices.

In line with the programme for Government, the Department of Health has made a commitment to expanding clinical trials in Ireland. Deputy Naughten has made a fair point in comparing Denmark and Ireland. This comparison shows that we need to scale this up further and scale up our ambition. The commitment we have made and the Department of Health has made under the programme for Government is embedded strategically across key policy initiatives, including the national cancer strategy, the national strategy for accelerating genetics and genomics and Impact 2030: Ireland’s Research and Innovation Strategy. The positive impact of research activity, including clinical trials, on the care of patients is universally accepted. Research supports the recruitment, retention and motivation of clinical staff who will drive the development of quality services.

To be fair, significant progress has been achieved in recent years, but challenges remain. The Government is determined to build on the progress to date to ensure we have the best-in-class clinical trials landscape that delivers better patient outcomes. Over the last 15 years, the Department of Health has invested more than €150 million in clinical trials and research supports. I was reading about this with interest on Monday. The Deputy will have heard Dr. Austin Duffy, who is director of the clinical trial unit in the Mater Hospital, on “Morning Ireland”. I very much welcome that a new clinical trial unit has been opened at the hospital. That start unit hopes to have about 50 patients enrolled in the first year of phase 1 trials. It will be a free service for suitable patients. That is the type of thing we want to see rolled out across our expert hospitals.

There is not a family in the country that has not been affected by cancer. Our oncology services are excellent. The treatment is excellent and some of the best in Europe. I agree with the Deputy that in order to ensure that clinical trials are done and we continue research and trials to bring forward new drugs and treatments that are going to improve patient outcomes, which is a priority, this area needs to be scaled up. We need to scale up not just the ambition that is there, but also the delivery in that space. When compared with some other countries, we have ground to make up. I am delighted to see that clinical trial in place in the Mater Hospital, which will be significant in itself.

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