Last Friday I accepted an invitation to visit the breast clinic at St. Vincent's Hospital where there were 160 women. The only common link among them was a fear of cancer because they had been referred by their GPs. They received a tremendous service: a clinical examination, a mammogram, a biopsy, were met by a surgeon and an oncologist and have the care of a clinical nurse and the friendship and services of the Irish Cancer Society.
The service was excellent but the waiting was long. In modern hospitals where there may be up to 220 women waiting for a service on a particular day it shows the need to expand that clinic and clinics throughout the country.
Breast cancer is a disease from which 650 to 660 women in Ireland die each year. I hope the Minister can reassure us the new development at St. Vincent's Hospital will include a specialised clinic to assist women at all stages of breast cancer disease. One group which particularly needs attention are the high risk women who have a family history of cancer. They need special care and a day allocated to them rather than all women at different stages being referred by their GPs from all over the country to attend on a Friday. It shows the need for clinics throughout the country. Some 1,200 new cases of breast cancer are diagnosed each year. There is a tendency by all GPs to refer everybody to Dublin, thus creating a scare among women. If dealt with locally, the problem may not be as bad. When referred to Dublin women are more fearful.
The need for a national breast screening service has been debated previously. A number of factors lead to breast cancer but no real cause is known. This means we cannot prevent breast cancer but we can detect it. The most successful way of detecting it is by breast screening. The Eccles Breast Screening Programme found a detection rate of 7.9 per cent per 1,000 women. This is an extremely high rate, one of the highest in the EU. It has been proven that a national breast screening service for women aged between 50 and 64 can detect the cancer, therefore ensuring it can be treated.
I accept there is a problem with compliance, getting the women to take up the offer of a mammogram. The results of the study in 1996 showed that 61.5 per cent opted to avail of the service in the first round but this was increased to 85 per cent in the second round. This study asked about the feasibility of running a national programme. It needs to be phased in and women must comply. There is a need to get women to admit they are over 50 years of age and in need of the mammogram. Women need to accept that the test will not automatically show they have the disease. Early detection means that women can be properly looked after.
There is a need to provide a high quality service throughout the country. We will only accept the best when it comes to women's health. Now is the time to start testing women in the 50 to 64 age bracket. Will the Minister give a commitment that the clinic at St. Vincent's Hospital will be established as a specialised centre and that the first phase of the national breast screening programme will be implemented this year?