Breast care clinic appeal is launched

PLANS to build a stand-alone breast care clinic on the grounds of Beaumont Hospital have moved a step closer following the launch of a fundraising appeal.   

A total of €4 million has already been secured for the ambitious project with €1 million still to be raised.

The building work is out to tender at the moment and will commence later this year with an expected completion date of September 2020.

This will be a stand-alone dedicated building with assessment services housed under one roof for the first time.

A spokeswoman for the €1 million Breast Clinic Appeal told Northside People: “Its development will revolutionise the delivery of breast services for patients with breast issues in the future and will bring us into line with services which have been available on Dublin’s southside for some time.”

The Beaumont Hospital Foundation is calling on all sectors of the community to offer their support in helping to raise the final €1 million.

Approximately 9,000 patients are seen in the hospital’s breast clinics annually. This very large throughput of patients is placing huge pressure on hospital capacity and the need for a dedicated clinic is urgent.

In the last decade, the number of breast cancer diagnoses annually has grown from 89 to 400. 

Rapid population growth in the catchment area; growing recognition of the need to be breast aware; and an acknowledgement of the quality of care provided by the hospital’s Breast Care Service have all played a part in driving up attendance figures.

Senator David Norris and 40 women from the ‘Sea of Change’ choir – the recent golden buzzer act on Ireland’s Got Talent, many of whom are cancer survivors – launched the appeal. 

Sian Gray, marketing director of Lidl Ireland, who is from Howth and has been treated in Beaumont for breast cancer, spoke at the launch.

Professor Arnie Hill, whose vision is the driving force behind the proposed Breast Clinic, was also among the speakers. 

‘Sea of Change’ performed in the newly renovated RCSI Education and Research Centre.