Bernard Allen (Cork North Central, Fine Gael)
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Question 124: To ask the Minister for Health and Children if her attention has been drawn to a six year audit of cancer services at St. James's Hospital which has shown dramatic increases in urological and other cancers and that this is the first audit carried out here to provide long-term outcome data on cancer patients which enables for the first time a comparison of cancer care at the hospital with international standards and benchmarks; and if she will urge other hospitals to carry out such an audit (details supplied). [15941/08]

Jimmy Devins (Sligo-North Leitrim, Fianna Fail)
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I officially launched the Six-Year Cancer Audit Report, St. James's Hospital 2001-2006 on 7 April last. High quality information which is timely, accessible and accurate is vital to the implementation of the Health Service Executive National Cancer Control Programme.

Statistics in relation to cancer incidence are collated by the National Cancer Registry. The Registry has published a number of comparisons of cancer care and outcomes in Ireland with those in other countries, most recently the EUROCARE report on cancer survival in Europe and the imminent CONCORD report on cancer outcomes in five continents, as well as audits of cancer treatment against international standards. Continued development of cancer information systems has been given a high priority by the Director of the National Cancer Control Programme. I have allocated additional revenue funding of €1m to the Registry this year to support the further development of quality and audit systems in all eight designated cancer centres, which includes St. James's Hospital.