Seán Kyne (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Cathaoirleach's office for choosing this issue for debate. I welcome the Minister of State, Deputy Feighan, to the Chamber to discuss, once again, healthcare matters in the west of Ireland. As I always say, it is great to have a Minister of State from the west, who has an interest in this particular area, answering the questions. As he knows, the national development plan, NDP, under Project Ireland 2040 objectives, states: "In accordance with balanced regional development, a cancer care network for the Saolta region (West, North West) with a Cancer Centre at Galway University Hospital with appropriate infrastructure will be delivered." This is a welcome commitment for which many people fought, including politicians, practitioners and those with expertise in the field of cancer care in the west. Those people do a tremendous job in the region with the resources and facilities they have.

Unfortunately, as the Minister of State knows, cancer care outcomes in the west of Ireland are not as good as elsewhere in the country. That is the unfortunate reality. The survival rates from cancers are lower in the region than they are in other parts of Ireland. It is not acceptable that any part of the country would be left behind in this fashion. That is why I welcome the commitment in this regard in the NDP. One in two of us will get cancer during our lifetime. This is a frightening statistic but it reflects the reality. It is the reality because we have an ageing population and people who live longer are more likely to suffer from a number of illnesses.

We need to get the best results we can in the west of Ireland. Unfortunately, the survival rates for such conditions as lung and colorectal cancer are lower than the average for the country. This is not good enough. Figures from HSE west show that for breast cancer, there is a cumulative five-year standardised average net survival rate of 80%, compared with the average for Ireland of 85%. In the case of lung cancer, the survival rate in the HSE west area is 16.7%, compared with the national average of 19.5%. For colorectal cancers, the survival rate in the west of 62.6% is just below the national average of 63.1%. The survival rates in the region are worse than the average for the whole country. These statistics are no reflection of the wonderful work consultants and staff do, but it is a wake-up call on the need for a cancer care strategy and facilities in the west.

I welcome the commitment in the NDP but we need to see progress on it. It is a long way out to 2040, under Project Ireland 2040, and a long way out, under the NDP, to 2030. We have seen with other projects that actions are put down on paper but their progress and delivery through all the various stages is very slow. It is incumbent on all politicians in the west of Ireland to drive and push this project forward. As I understand it, following a great deal of deliberation, it has been agreed that the site will be located at University Hospital Galway, UHG, as stated in the NDP. There have been larger debates for years on the best use of appropriate sites and, in this instance, whether UHG or Merlin Park University Hospital should be used. The commitment is now in place for the development of the centre in the grounds of UHG. We need to see progress and we need timelines that can be adhered to and achieved in order to ensure delivery.