Cervical Check: Terminally ill young mother makes moving appeal to Taoiseach
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A young mother of two with terminal cervical cancer has issued a moving appeal to the Government to push through legislation to support her children and other bereaved families.
Lynsey Bennett (32), who is suing for alleged misinterpretation of her cervical smear slides taken under the national screening programme, wants to know her 12-year-old and seven-year-old daughters will be protected.
“My girls are not getting the support they need,” she said. “I suppose, as someone who lost their own mam at 24, I know the scary feeling of being alone and feeling like you have lost your biggest support.”
A single mother, Ms Bennett estimates the girls have lived with her own aunt for 18 months during the last four years while she attends St James Hospital.
In March the Supreme Court, while ruling on Limerick-woman Ruth Morrissey’s case, noted legislation is required around support to replace services which would have been provided by a deceased parent.
In a moving video shared on her social media account, Ms Bennett addresses Taoiseach Micheál Martin.
“The Supreme Court ruling held that damages for loss of services, care costs cannot be recovered from these cases," said Ms Bennett. "This is totally wrong.
Ms Bennett, from Longford, survived two previous bouts of cancer but it returned during the pandemic.
On her first diagnosis, she said: “I knew something was wrong but I didn’t think it was cancer because my smear test had said I was fine. No more than when my GP saw me, the first thing he checked was my smear test and he said to me ‘Your smear test was fine Lynsey and it wasn’t even a year ago’.”
She has found support in the 221+ group which represents women affected by failures in the Cervical Check programme.
“It’s so good to not be alone in this, but then it is so heart-breaking to see what other women are going through,” Ms Bennett said. “And it is so hard because everybody is at different stages and you can see what’s possibly your future.”
A government spokesman said Micheál Martin was 'deeply saddened' by Ms Bennett's letter, has discussed it with the Health Minister and asked him to respond.
The Supreme Court ruling is being considered by Justice Minister Helen McEntee who met with the 221+ group.
The spokesman said: “However, changing the law in this area would require detailed policy consideration, given that any changes would apply to all personal injury cases involving death into the future.”
Separately Ms Bennett is suing the HSE, Eurofins Biomnis Ireland Ltd, and Quest Diagnostics Inc. in America.
Ms Bennett’s cancer, it is claimed, was allowed to develop and spread unidentified, unmonitored and untreated until she was diagnosed with cervical cancer in January 2017.
She hopes the court case can go ahead in January. "That’s our plan now and I’m trying to look at treatment abroad as well. I am not giving up.”