Hundreds of Irish availing of ‘right’ to get cancer treatment abroad

A Cork TD has highlighted the importance of the HSE Treatment Abroad Scheme for providing access to specialist cancer care overseas.

Data provided to Fine Gael TD for Cork North Central Colm Burke shows that, nationally, 466 people over the age of 25, and 164 aged 24 and under, travelled outside of Ireland for specialised cancer treatment not available in Ireland in the last five years.

In 2024, the highest number of people under 24 travelled abroad to receive treatment in the last five years, with 48 Irish patients availing of the scheme.

A HSE spokesperson said: “In general, the Treatment Abroad Scheme provides for the funding of a public patient from Ireland to access treatment that is not available in Ireland, in another EU/EEA country, the UK or Switzerland.

“A core principle of the governing legislation, EU Regulations 883/2004 and 987/2009, is that the patient must apply for, and be granted, prior authorisation before accessing the treatment.

“The HSE cannot be held liable for the costs of healthcare that the HSE has not agreed in advance to assume.”

Mr Burke told The Echo that it was good to see the system was being used: “Often, we would have a scenario where the expertise just isn’t here.

“If you have a type of cancer that only six people a year are diagnosed with in Ireland, our consultants won’t have the same level of expertise as in a country where they get six diagnoses a month.”

He added that he has helped people to apply for this scheme successfully, to travel to the UK, and praised the staff in the treatment abroad process, whom he said were incredibly helpful.

Mr Burke explained: “Every EU citizen has the right to travel to another member state to get treatment, and after the UK left the EU, a memorandum of agreement was signed to ensure that the UK and Ireland could continue on with the treatment-abroad process.”