‘I could be another of those 17 women, it’s very upsetting’
VICKY Phelan has spoken of her distress at the news that 17 women are now known to have died in the cervical cancer scandal, saying: “I could be another one of those women”.
The mother-of-two said yesterday’s revelations mean a written apology she received from HSE director general Tony O’Brien is now “null and void”.
Speaking on the ‘Ray D’Arcy Show’ on RTÉ Radio she said she never guessed at the magnitude of the controversy.
“I’m actually very upset to be honest to think that there are 17 women that, you know, it’s bad enough that I knew there were three. Now there’s 17.
“The reality is I could be another one of those women. If I had died, I would be on that list.
“Thankfully, I didn’t and I’m here to tell the tale and by God am I going to take these guys on. I think it’s disgraceful what they’re doing and what they’ve done to the women of Ireland.”
Ms Phelan, who was diagnosed with cancer in 2014 after being given a false negative result for a smear test three years earlier, said she doesn’t have any trust in the management of CervicalCheck.
She thinks there should be further repercussions beyond the resignation of Dr Gráinne Flannelly, the former director of CervicalCheck who stood down at the weekend.
“The bottom line to me is that people in that office obviously knew and you know, they’re all quaking in their boots now because their positions are coming into question.
“You think it’s a one-off, that how could they do this to anybody else? Obviously when I took the (court) case I knew there were other women involved. I don’t think anyone could ever have imagined the magnitude of this. It’s very upsetting, really, for all those families.
“That could be my husband and my children and my family,” she added.
She said she doesn’t want a tribunal or inquiry that will be “dragged out and protracted”.
Showing her fighting spirit, she said she will not be going away silently, adding: “They fecked with the wrong woman this time.
“I won’t have achieved anything with what I’ve done if I’m not still alive...
“I want to be alive to see the changes that this will affect going forward.
“So, you know, it’s another impetus for me to keep fighting, to live, basically.
“I just said ‘You know mammy, she’s going to keep fighting. I’m not going to die Darragh’, I have to tell him that.
“Nobody knows at the end of the day – but my God, if I have any control over it, I’m not going anywhere.”