This article is from page 12 of the 2008-07-29 edition of The Clare People. OCR mistakes are to be expected so download the original SWF or the rendered page 12 JPG
THE trial heard details of treatment received by three patients, at the East Clinic in Killaloe. While six patients were listed on the 25 charges, there was insufficient evidence to pro- ceed with three of those, Josephine Durkan, Mary O’Connor and Karen Kurvink.
Relatives of John Sheridan, John James Gallagher and Conor O’Sullivan gave evidence during the lengthy trial. Six of the 17 charges that went to the jury related to John Sheridan, four related to John James Gallagher and seven related to Conor O’Sullivan.
Mr Sheridan, from Kells, County Kilkenny, died from cancer in No- vember 2002. He had several tu- mours on his liver and had colon can- cer. His wife Margaret told the trial that Dr Carmody told him he was “a strong man. He said he could benefit from the treatment and he would be able to help him.”
She said her husband was delighted and it gave him hope.
Mr Sheridan’s brother-in-law Mar- tin Smith said that at a meeting with Mr Carmody and his colleague Dr William Porter, at the East Clinic, on October 16, 2001, Mr Carmody briefly touched him on the elbow and said, “We’ll cure John’s cancer.”
He said that Dr Carmody and Dr Porter were “speaking off the same hymn sheet on the PDT treatment.
They believed in the treatment. They said they would cure him (John) and despite all my scepticism, they were doctors. You invest trust in doctors and I believed them too.
“John was facing death and this was his last hope and he believed that the treatment would cure him,’ said Mr Smith.
John James Gallagher’s widow Bernadette told the court she felt cheated by the doctors at the Kil- laloe clinic where her husband had received PDT.
Mr Gallagher had cancer of the liv- er and died in September 2002. He underwent PDT at the clinic in Feb
ruary of that year. Bernadette Gal- lagher said that Mr Carmody told her and her husband he was opposed to chemotherapy as it was “barbaric.”
Instead, he recommended PDT, which, he said, was suitable for all types of cancer and would destroy her husband’s cancer. They paid €14,000 for the treatment.
She said Mr Carmody told her hus- band the treatment was ‘just like magic’ and they thought it was too good to be true. Mrs Gallagher said that Paschal Carmody told her hus- band it was his mission in life to find a cure for cancer.
She said that their son Tecwen, now 23, asked Dr Carmody would he keep his dad’s cancer at bay. She said he replied, “We’re not alone going to be able to hold it at bay, we’re going to destroy it. Aren’t we Bill? (to Dr
Porter)’
Conor O’Sullivan died from cancer on November 13, 2002, just weeks before he turned 16.
His mother Christina told the trial that Paschal Carmody promised
that he would cure his cancer or “at worst” keep him alive.
In 2001, ewings sarcoma was iden- tified and Conor underwent chemo- therapy. At that stage he was given a 50-50 chance. He was later given
just six months to live, after a scan in May 2002 showed that his tumor had returned.
The O’Sullivans visited the East Clinic and she said that Paschal Car- mody said PDT would work a treat on Conor’s type of cancer.
‘He said the doctors up in Dublin don’t know the good work we do down here,’ she said.
She said Dr Carmody told them that Dr William Porter would do the treatment.
“He came around from the side of his desk and went around to Conor and put his arm on his shoulder and said, Conor I’ll cure your cancer and at worst if I don’t cure your cancer, Pll at least keep you alive,” she said.
“We felt as if the weight of the world was lifted off our shoulders. We were on cloud nine,’ she said. Conor underwent the treatment on July 29 of that year, but died in No- vember.
However, in court, Mr Carmody de- nied the allegations and insisted that he never promised any of his patients he would cure them of cancer.
‘“T never use the word ‘cure’ in any care, with any patient,’ he told the ete
His barrister Pat Marrinan SC, told the jury in his closing speech, “Pas- chal Carmody didn’t kill these pa- tients, cancer did.”