Health Screening Programmes
Dail Éireann — 2026-09-23
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Mary Butler (FF), Waterford

Sorry, but it is not an over-and-back. The most important thing we can do leaving here today is to encourage women, first and foremost, to avail of screening. Only 70% of BreastCheck screenings are accessed every year. That means two out of every three women avail of the service. We can all agree that we should leave here today trying to encourage people to avail of it.
The second point is that one third of all breast cancers are detected through screening. I have a very good friend who, many years ago, went for her very first mammogram, was diagnosed with breast cancer and had a very positive outcome.
In relation to the cases both Deputies have raised, the circumstances are simply not acceptable to me as a woman or as a Minister of State in the Department of Health. It is not a situation we want to see arising. The HSE is making every effort to expand services.
The point made on visibility is important. Breast cancer is not something we should be hiding away. In Waterford, my constituency, the BreastCheck van is in the Regional Sports Centre for six months of the year and in Dungarvan Community Hospital for the other six. Every eligible woman aged from 50 to 69 in a particular area is invited to attend. Unfortunately, only two out of three do. Notwithstanding the case cited, it is important to get the message out that if a woman of any age notices a change in a breast, she should go to her GP immediately and get support in as timely a manner as possible.
I thank the Deputies for raising this. It is so important that we talk about women's health on the floor of the Dáil. I will bring the Deputies' comments back to the Minister.

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Record URI: https://data.oireachtas.ie/akn/ie/debateRecord/dail/2026-09-23/debate/main
Retrieved: 2026-09-28T05:50:49+00:00
Sitting date: 2026-09-23