Drastic choice for patients

Women in the south-east suffering from breast cancer are opting for mastectomies because of the lack of radiotherapy in Waterford, the Munster Express reported. This "drastic step" is seen as the lesser of two evils, the paper said, as women choose breast removal "rather than endure the hardship of travelling for radiotherapy in Dublin and Cork".

Cancer specialist Dr Seamus O'Reilly was critical of the lack of both cancer treatment and cancer screening in the area. The paper quoted him as saying: "With 400,000 people living in the south-east, the region has more than enough of a population to justify a radiotherapy centre."

Breast cancer services in the midlands also caused concern this week following a report commissioned by the National Cancer Forum. The report said cancer services in the Midland Health Board region were in need of much improvement. However, the Westmeath Independent said the health board failed to make a decision on how to implement change.

The future of the breast cancer unit at Mayo General Hospital is still unclear, the Mayo News reported. The paper said that although Mayo Fine Gael TD Mr Enda Kenny had raised the issue in the Dail with the Minister for Health, Mr Martin, he received no commitment on the unit's future. "I am most unhappy and indeed quite suspicious of the Minister's intentions," deputy Kenny said. An editorial in the Longford Leader said there was "no excuse now for inadequate health services" following the announcement that the Minister for Finance, Mr McCreevy, is expected to have a £5 billion Budget surplus. "This county has been one of the biggest sufferers from poorly funded health services," it said.

The health of the nation was also in question in Wicklow this week as residents of Glenealy slated Wicklow County Council for their handling of the village's contaminated water supply, according to the Wicklow People. "Local people say it is like living in Calcutta - they cannot even wash their hands," it noted.

Contamination of the supply taken from a stream was discovered by the health board last month and tests revealed "faecal coliforms" in the water. The supply has been shut off but the source of the pollution is not yet known.

The Donegal Democrat said residents in the Drimark area of Donegal town were also unhappy with their water. The paper described, "foul smelling and dirty looking water" which has been coming into homes for the past five years. The area engineer admitted the water system was in need of replacement, the paper said, but there was, "no public health concern" and the water was safe to drink.

Water was also an issue in Kerry this week but this time the problem was one of excess. The Kerryman told of two boys in Annascaul who have to climb a ditch to get to school because the road on which they live is waterlogged. A spokesperson for Kerry County Council said drainage difficulties with nearby lands had to be resolved before the road could be repaired.

According to a report in the Corkman, Mallow District Court heard that Brian Keenan of Mallow had caused trouble in two shops, a petrol station and a hairdressing salon. In one shop he was reported to have punched the manager for "keeping an eye on him". He was removed but returned to "give him another kick on the leg". In the petrol station Keenan was said to have thrown milk at the assistants. The court then heard he smashed the window of the hairdressing salon and stole hairspray. His counsel said Keenan had "little recollection" of the incidents. Keenan pleaded guilty and Judge Michael Patwell sentenced him to 12 months imprisonment.

Bus Eireann has withdrawn its school bus services to Columba College, Killucan, after the bus was attacked with stones the West- meath Examiner reported. The bus was bringing pupils to school when the windscreen was smashed by stones as it travelled through Riverdale, Raharney.

Parents are threatening to remove their children from the school if the matter is not resolved.

The early arrival of winter may result in unwanted house guests, Kerry's Eye warned. The paper said homeowners were under threat from rat and mouse infestation, with the rodents seeking to escape indoors from the cold. "An adult rat can enter a half-inch hole; a mouse can squeeze through a hole the size of a Biro," the paper said.

It advised people not to be lulled into thinking that "if Mickey Mouse is about his big brother is not". Mice, it said, can also carry diseases but probably not, it conceded, ones as serious as the Black Death.