Seanad debates
Wednesday, 16 April 2003
Cancer Treatment Services: Statements (Resumed).
I commend those who work at every level in cancer services, from nurses to consultants. I agree with the Minister of State that there have been huge advances. One must pay tribute to the work of the hospice movement in humanising and putting care at the centre of terminal cancer services. An elderly man told me that he recalled his uncle being sent home from hospital many years ago dying with cancer. He lived in the adjoining house to his uncle's and, as a child, could hear him screaming in pain. People have horrendous memories of how things were in the past but those days are gone and should be replaced by an era in which we expect the best quality service. It will take some time to get there but we should see more progress and, in particular, more priority funding by the Government.
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