Naas shows solidarity this evening for women in Cervical Check Scandal

Today a  Co Kildare woman dying of cervical cancer has been told that the HSE has not yet accepted full liability.

In Naas, this evening, women wearing red, gathered in solidarity outside  Naas Courthouse, in a national event organised by Standing 4 Women.

Clane resident, Fionnuala Killeen, attended the show of solidarity today in Naas. She  grew up in Leixlip, the same village as terminally-ill woman Emma Mhic Mhathúna.

Ms Killeen said: "While I did not know Emma personally, I am a bit older than her, my siblings went to school with her."

Lawyers for Ms Mhic Mhathúna and her five children have called on the HSE to confirm whether or not they would be contesting liability in the part of the case relating to an alleged misreading or misdiagnosis of a smear test.

Senior Counsel Patrick Tracey told the court today that despite being given assurances from Taoiseach Leo Varadkar and Tánaiste Simon Coveney earlier this month, they were still having to prepare requests for discovery of documents because liability has not been admitted.

The Cervical Check Scandal broke when Vicky Phelan, a 43-year-old mother-of-two from Co Limerick, settled a High Court action for €2.5m after being incorrectly told in 2011 that her smear test had given a negative result for cancer.

In 2014 she was diagnosed with cancer but only told of the false negative last September.

Ms Nic Mhathúna, who spent a large part of her life, in Leixlip, is now one of the 209 women, in this country, who were given inaccurate smear test results. It is understood that 17 women have died already.