This article first appeared on Galway Bay FM

The Tánaiste has pledged to look into an 8 year wait for a vital scanner for cancer patients at UHG.

Raising the matter in the Dáil, Galway East TD Louis O’ Hara said there are no plans for a PET scanner until 2033.

In the meantime, he argued, patients in the West are being forced to travel long distances for scans, or referred to private hospitals at significant cost to the state.

Sinn Féin Deputy O’ Hara says something has to be done urgently about what he called a “postcode lottery” system when it comes to cancer care.

Speaking in response, Tánaiste Simon Harris said he’d bring the matter to the Health Minister.