Mary O'Rourke (Longford-Westmeath, Fianna Fail)
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Question 189: To ask the Minister for Health and Children if she will name the 13 centres designated by Professor O'Higgins to be centres of excellence for cancer care; when that designation was made; when the decision was taken to change the numbers from 13 to 8; the rationale behind the change; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [30511/07]

Mary Harney (Dublin Mid West, Progressive Democrats)
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The Report on the Development of Services for Symptomatic Breast Disease ('the O'Higgins Report') was published in 2000. The Report recommended 13 specialist breast cancer centres nationally based on a requirement for each centre to manage a minimum of 100 new primary breast cancer cases per annum as follows: South Eastern Health Board — Waterford Regional Hospital; Southern Health Board — South Infirmary and Cork University Hospitals; Mid-Western Health Board — Limerick Regional Hospital; Western Health Board — University College Hospital Galway; North-Eastern Health Board — Our Lady of Lourdes Hospital, Drogheda; North-Western Health Board — Sligo General Hospital, (Letterkenny General Hospital linked to Altnagelvin Hospital in Derry); Midland Health Board, — Midland Regional Hospital, Tullamore or Midland Regional Hospital, Portlaoise; Eastern Health Board — Mater Hospital, Beaumont Hospital, St Vincent's University Hospital, St James' Hospital and Tallaght Hospital.

Last June I approved National Quality Assurance Standards for Symptomatic Breast Disease Services under the Health Act 2007 which were prepared by a multi-disciplinary expert group chaired by Professor Niall O' Higgins. The Standards require that each centre providing breast cancer care manages a minimum of 150 new cases per year. Based on the new Standards, and the fact that the BreastCheck screening programme will reduce significantly the number of symptomatic breast cancer presentations, the Health Service Executive (HSE) determined that we require a total of eight specialist breast cancer centres nationally.

Arising from the designation of eight cancer centres nationally and in order to comply with the Standards, the Health Service Executive (HSE) has directed a number of hospitals with very low case volumes to cease breast cancer services. The National Hospitals Office has already planned the redirection of this symptomatic caseload. Further staged reductions in the number of hospitals providing breast cancer services will occur over the next two years in line with the development of quality assured capacity in the eight designated centres.

Mary O'Rourke (Longford-Westmeath, Fianna Fail)
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Question 190: To ask the Minister for Health and Children if she is satisfied that the Mater Hospital is in a position to cater for female cancer patients from Longford and Westmeath now that Mullingar Hospital has been told to stop dealing with these patients; the number of such patients who were treated in Mullingar Hospital during 2006 and 2007; the transport arrangements that have been put in place to enable people to get to and from the Mater who do not have transport themselves; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [30512/07]

Mary Harney (Dublin Mid West, Progressive Democrats)
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Arising from the designation of eight cancer centres nationally and in order to comply with the National Quality Assurance Standards for Symptomatic Breast Disease, the Health Service Executive (HSE) has announced that within the coming weeks, breast cancer services at the Midland Regional Hospital, Mullingar will be transferred to the Mater Hospital in Dublin. In 2006 a total of 19 breast cancer procedures were carried out at the Midland Regional Hospital at Mullingar.

The HSE and the Mater Hospital are in discussions concerning the planning of an orderly transfer of patients from Mullingar. My Department has requested the Parliamentary Affairs Division of the Executive to have a reply issued directly to the Deputy in relation to the specific questions regarding the transfer of services from Mullingar to the Mater Hospital.