DUBLIN, Ireland: A nurse who alleged a delay in diagnosing her breast cancer has sued the HSE in the High Court.

A mother of three, Aine McSweeney from Tipperary, said she had two mammograms in 2020 and 2022 that were wrongly reported as harmless.

McSweeney, 52, was later diagnosed with breast cancer in 2023. She then had major treatment, including surgery to remove a breast, as well as chemotherapy and radiotherapy.

In the present case, it was claimed that the two mammograms done at the Breast Clinic in University Hospital Waterford were reported as normal.

However, her side argues they should have been marked as uncertain and needed further checks. They say the scans showed small clusters that could be a warning sign of cancer. If these had been properly followed up, they believe she would have been investigated and treated earlier.

All of these claims are denied. The High Court was told that medical experts on both sides disagree about how the scans should have been read.

Her lawyer said McSweeney also had a family history of breast cancer, which should have been taken into account.

The judge, Paul Coffey, was asked to decide whether there was a failure in care by the Health Service Executive over how the mammograms were handled.

Her legal team said the cluster seen in earlier scans was in the same place where the cancer was later found. They argued that it became clearer over time and led to the diagnosis in 2023. They also said the warning signs were already visible in 2020 and more obvious in 2022, but no biopsy was done.

According to her side, if the cancer had been found earlier, she could have received treatment sooner. They also said many breast cancers are first detected through such clusters before any lump appears.

They further claimed that the 2020 and 2022 scans were misinterpreted as harmless, even though they showed signs that should have prompted further testing.

They also argued that if the cancer had been diagnosed in 2020, it would have been smaller and had not spread, making treatment easier than it was in 2023.

All of these allegations were denied.