Breast Cancer Awareness Month Briefing Held in Leinster House
“The stories we will hear today are a powerful reminder that research isn’t something that happens in the background,” Senator Teresa Costello said during a parliamentary briefing in Dublin.
Costello hosted clinicians, survivors, and representatives from Breast Cancer Ireland at the event to discuss ongoing medical advancements. As someone who has experienced breast cancer personally, Costello noted the profound fear associated with a diagnosis and emphasized the necessity of continued funding for research and improved patient access to treatments.
Clinical Impact and Patient Experiences
Patient testimony at the briefing highlighted the direct impact of recent therapeutic breakthroughs. Avril Tierney, diagnosed with breast cancer in 2019, underwent two years of intensive chemotherapy and invasive surgery before receiving a stage four metastatic diagnosis in early 2021. Her cancer had spread to her lungs and doctors deemed it treatable but no longer curable, prompting her oncologist to offer a newly emerged treatment.
I underwent a combination of immunotherapy and chemotherapy,
Tierney said, adding that her tumours halved in size after three months and have remained stable since. I wouldn’t be standing before you today without research.
Senator Teresa Costello has said that continued investment in breast cancer research is transforming lives and giving hope to patients and families across Ireland.https://t.co/OPzFUDpsGY
Niamh Noonan received a stage three, triple-positive breast cancer diagnosis the day after her 30th birthday. Following TCHP chemotherapy that successfully shrank her tumours, she underwent a mastectomy, lymph node clearance, and 20 sessions of radiotherapy. Noonan currently receives three-weekly Kadcyla chemo-immunotherapy infusions alongside monthly Zoladex injections and daily hormonal therapy.
The briefing also highlighted male breast cancer diagnoses through the experience of Dara McDonough, who discovered a lump while showering. After undergoing a scan and a mammogram at a doctor’s recommendation, McDonough received a breast cancer diagnosis. I sit there thinking ‘But I don’t have breasts!’ It felt surreal,
he said.
Laboratory Discoveries Driving Clinical Outcomes
Professor Leonie Young, who leads the Endocrine Oncology Research Group in the Royal College of Surgeons, addressed the transition of laboratory findings into patient care. As an internationally recognized leader in the field, Young has founded clinical trials, driven research innovation, and established a spinout company to advance disease understanding.
The progress we have made in breast cancer treatment over recent years is the direct result of research,
Young said. Patients are living longer and better lives because of discoveries that have moved from the laboratory into the clinic.
According to broader epidemiological data from Cancer Research UK, breast survival rates have improved significantly over recent decades, with current figures showing that eight in ten women diagnosed with the disease survive for 10 years or more.
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