Departments

Medical Oncology

Consultant Medical Oncologists

• Dr. Oscar Breathnach
• Dr, Liam Grogan
• Prof Bryan Hennessy
• Dr. Patrick Morris

The Medical Oncology service treat patients across the RCSI Hospital Group with systemic anticancer therapy. Following discussion at a Multi-Disciplinary meeting, patients with early stage cancer are referred to one of the four Consultant Medical Oncologists. Of these, Dr. Patrick Morris and Professor Bryan Hennessy have a subspecialty interest in breast cancer and both have sessional commitments to Drogheda.

Systemic anticancer therapy is given to increase the chance of cure following definitive loco-regional treatment and to prolong life and minimise the symptoms of advanced cancer. Although treatment is generally coordinated from Beaumont Hospital (as the designated cancer centre), many options can be delivered at a more convenient Oncology Day Ward across the region, including in the private sector.

Increasingly, systemic therapy is becoming personalised to individual tumour biology and there is a greater use of oral, targeted therapies. A major focus of the Medical Oncology Service is participation in Clinical Trials, which increase our understanding of cancer biology and offer patients early access to potentially new and better therapies for patients.