WHAT IS IT ?

SARCOMA- never heard of it , that's o.k because most fully qualified and trained Doctors haven't either.  

Sarcoma is a rare cancer that affects 200-250 people in Ireland annually.  There are 50 different types, which are not easily diagnosed unless you are specifically trained in this area.  If caught early, Sarcoma is curable, however if not diagnosed early and spreads then Sarcoma is incurable.  The only hope for patients of incurable Sarcoma is a specialised plan, which requires a Specialist in the Sarcoma field.

There is currently only one Sarcoma Specialist employed in St Vincents University Hospital, Dublin.  Sarcoma patients throughout Ireland have been forwarded to this Specialist by various Consultants throughout the last number of years, which questions if she may be the leading, if not only, Sarcoma Specialist in Ireland.  Over the last three years, this department and Sarcoma patients have thrived under the care of Dr Alexia Bertuzzi, with many owing her their lives.

WHY A CRISIS YOU ASK?

As of the end of June 2016, this consultants contract will cease.

At the moment the only patients notified are those who have actually contacted St Vincents Hospital CEO, querying why this Consultant will no longer be in charge of both their care and the Sarcoma Service. Patients have been advised that their care and the Sarcoma Service is being transferred to a Consultant Medical Oncologist. Upon investigation it has been discovered that the new Consultant is not a Specialist in the field of Sarcoma.  

How can someone that is not trained to know the symptoms, be able to then provide patients with a treatment plan to save their lives?

How can a hospital allow a service as unique and rare as Sarcoma be run by a person without the required specialty.

We as a group of Sarcoma Patients, under the care of St Vincent's University Hospital, are pleading with you to please take a moment to sign our petition, requesting that Sarcoma Services are maintained to the high level that is currently being achieved. We are pleading that a Specialist in the area of Sarcoma is put in charge of OUR health and OUR lives.  Lives have already been saved over the last number of years, we want this to continue the way it has been. 

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