Mayo councillor calls for action to provide cancer patients with access to EU-approved medicines

Independent Mayo County Councillor Patsy O’Brien has issued a strong call to action on Minister for Health, Jennifer Carroll MacNeill, demanding that all new cancer drugs licensed by the European Medicines Agency (EMA) be made available in Ireland without delay.

Citing alarming figures that place Ireland at the bottom of Western European countries for access to cancer medicines, Cllr O’Brien described the current system as "unacceptable and in urgent need of reform."

Since 2020, the EMA has approved 56 new cancer treatments across Europe, yet only 14 of these are currently available to patients in Ireland, a mere 25%.

This puts Irish cancer patients at a clear disadvantage, limiting their treatment options and potentially affecting survival outcomes and quality of life.

“Ireland cannot continue to allow red tape and inefficiency to stand in the way of life-saving care,” Cllr O’Brien said. “These figures are not just statistics. They represent real people, fathers, mothers, sons, daughters, whose lives are being impacted because our system is too slow to adapt. That must change now.”

A new report from IQVIA for the European Federation of Pharmaceutical Industries and Associations (EFPIA) revealed that Ireland ranks 28th out of 37 European countries when it comes to the time it takes for new cancer medicines to become available, a staggering average delay of 645 days from EMA authorisation. That’s nearly two years.

“It is not acceptable that people living in other Western European countries, Germany, France, Sweden, even neighbouring England and Scotland have access to modern cancer treatments up to a year earlier than Irish patients,” said Cllr O’Brien.

“There must be a renewed political and administrative urgency to deliver faster and fairer access to innovative medicines. Minister Carroll MacNeill has it within her power to act, and she must act now.”

The issue stems from the sluggish reimbursement and approval processes in Ireland. While European law sets a target of 180 days for national reimbursement decisions, 86% of new medicines reimbursed in Ireland between 2022 and 2024 exceeded this limit.

Ireland’s failure to meet these legal timelines directly contradicts the commitment made in the Programme for Government to ensure patients receive access to new medicines “as quickly as possible.”

Cllr O’Brien has endorsed calls by the Irish Pharmaceutical Healthcare Association (IPHA) to use the upcoming Framework Agreement on the Pricing and Supply of Medicines, due for renewal in September 2025 as a turning point for systemic reform.

“It’s not about changing the law,” O’Brien added, “but about enforcing it. The system needs to be resourced and governed to deliver on its obligations. There is no excuse for continued failure when the consequences are this serious. It is up to Minister for Health, Jennifer Carroll MacNeill to act immediately.”

The approval of Abemaciclib, a breast cancer treatment that reduces recurrence risk by 30%, has been welcomed as a breakthrough. But patient advocates are warning that this single success should not distract from the broader, urgent need for structural reform.

“This is just one drug,” Cllr O’Brien said. “There are 42 more out there that have already passed European safety and efficacy standards but remain out of reach for Irish patients. That is a disgrace.”

Cllr O’Brien also acknowledged the vital work being done by organisations such as the Marie Keating Foundation, which continues to provide frontline support to those living with cancer through programmes like its “Positive Living Programme” for patients with metastatic disease.

“We must continue to push for quicker access to innovative treatments that can vastly improve quality of life and survival rates for cancer patients in Ireland. Cancer does not wait. The system shouldn’t either. Every day lost in this process is a day stolen from someone’s future. As a country, we must do better and we must do it now.

I am calling on Minister for Health Jennifer Carroll MacNeill to ensure that the full complement of approved cancer medicines, licensed by the EU, are made available to cancer patients in Ireland, immediately.” Cllr O’Brien said.