Exclusion from breast check scheme 'a denial of rights' for women over 64

HEALTH COMMITTEE:WOMEN OVER 64 are being denied their human rights because they are no longer included in the BreastCheck programme, a member of the Oireachtas Committee on Health and Children said yesterday.

Senator Mary White, Fianna Fáil spokeswoman for children and older people, said the committee had repeatedly heard from gerontologist Dr Desmond O’Neill that women over 64 were seven times more likely to get breast cancer, yet they are excluded from the programme which provides free mammograms to women aged 50 to 64.

“It is a terrible denial of the human rights of older women, I have absolutely no doubt about it. I really feel that it’s not on the radar as a serious issue.”

She said the system in the North where women were called in up to 70 years of age was exemplary and labelled the exclusion of women over 64 in the Republic as “cruel”.

“I am blaming the Minister to honest with you. I’m very disappointed because it is such a glaring example of the denial of human rights,” she said.

Tony O’Brien, director of the National Cancer Screening Service said while the former board of the service had recommended the screening limit be extended to women up to 69, at present there was no timetable in place for this. However, he added that it remained a key objective.

Joan Kelly, nursing services manager with the Irish Cancer Society, told the committee that the society advocated that the upper age limit for the screening programme be raised to 74.

Meanwhile, Fine Gael spokesman on children Charlie Flanagan said he has secured agreement from the committee for a fresh investigation into allegations of abuse by the Brothers of Charity in two facilities in Galway.

“The Hynes report and events at the Residential Institutions Redress Board have shown that the McCoy report totally failed to fully investigate allegations of child abuse at the facilities in question for myriad reasons,” he said.

“We now know that the inquiry that led to the McCoy report was inadequate, the terms of reference were defective, the methodology was inappropriate, there was a lack of back-up staff and an insufficient number of individuals who alleged abuse were given an opportunity to be interviewed or consulted.”

He said a “proper and appropriate inquiry” into the abuse of young people suffering from disability in these institutions was needed and added that Minister for Health Mary Harney should act promptly.