A man who claimed he was deprived of a chance to have his prostate cancer successfully treated because the prison services failed to refer him to a consultant following blood tests carried out in prison has settled his High Court action.
Michael Leonard (54), Nadd, Banteer, Co Cork, claimed the failure to refer him resulted in a two-year delay in him being diagnosed with prostate cancer and he was now seriously ill.
Mr Leonard, a father of five, had a blood test in 2007 while serving a six-month sentence in Cork Prison for driving a car while disqualified.
Senior counsel Dr John O’Mahony said the test showed an elevated level of prostate specific antigen (PSA) – which can be a sign of cancer.
The high PSA level should have led to appropriate steps being taken and a biopsy should have been carried out. There was a two- year gap where nothing was done.
Had Mr Leonard been diagnosed and treated in 2007, there was a possibility he could have been cured, Dr O’Mahony added.