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\u201cIn career terms, I did things in reverse. I got married, had kids and then, aged 30, went to Trinity College Dublin to study radiotherapy for four years. It was a privilege to attend university full-time, made possible through the support of my husband, Tony, who took on school runs and after-school care. Upon entering the workforce, I hit the ground running and progressed very quickly.<\/p>\n
\u201cI started as a radiation therapist in St Luke\u2019s Hospital, Rathgar, in 2004 and loved my work. It combined a highly technical role with a strong focus on holistic, patient-centred care, and I gained invaluable research experience. For me, the patient has always been at the heart of everything.<\/p>\n
\u201cAfter six years, I moved into radiotherapy management and progressed to director of operational services for the St Luke\u2019s Radiation Oncology Network. In 2019, I moved to Tallaght University Hospital, becoming chief operating officer in 2022. The following year, I became COO at Cancer Trials Ireland (CTI) \u2014 the national cancer clinical trials organisation. I\u2019ve had a strong interest in research since my earliest days in St Luke\u2019s, so I jumped at the chance to lead CTI, becoming CEO in 2025.<\/p>\n
\u201cMy clinical background gives me a good understanding of what cancer patients experience during treatment and what it means to them to have access to clinical trials.<\/p>\n
\u201cClinical trials offer patients hope and access to tomorrow\u2019s treatments today: new drugs, surgical techniques, advanced radiotherapy, and medical devices. Every drug in use today was developed through clinical trials.<\/p>\n
\u201cCTI\u2019s mission is to maximise cancer patients\u2019 access to high-quality, potentially life-altering clinical trials. We currently have 137 trials open in Ireland \u2014 Denmark, with a similar population, has over 280. We need more trials.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe National Cancer Strategy target is for 6% of cancer patients to participate in interventional clinical trials \u2014 currently, that figure stands at 2.7%. Every cancer patient in Ireland who could benefit from a trial should have that opportunity.<\/p>\n
\u201cCTI is part-funded by the Health Research Board and the Irish Cancer Society, with philanthropy playing a vital role in helping us open more trials.\u201d<\/p>\n
To mark International Clinical Trials Day, Cancer Trials Ireland is hosting a free webinar \u201cLet\u2019s Talk Trials: All You Need to Know About Cancer Trials\u201d on Friday, May 22, at 2.30pm. Featuring doctor and patient perspectives, registration is open at cancertrials.ie\/letstalktrials<\/a><\/p>\n <\/p>\n x<\/p>\n <\/p>\n
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