A public campaign by the Irish Blood Cancer Patients Advocacy Groupbeatbloodcancer.ie
BEAT BLOOD CANCERBring specialist treatment closer to home
The issueWhy Mags startedWatch & readAdd my name
Stem Cell Transplant & Cellular Therapy • Cork

Closer to home.
Closer to family.

Beat Blood Cancer brings together patients, families, clinicians and advocates supporting the call for a Stem Cell Transplant & Cellular Therapy Centre at Cork University Hospital.

Add my name before 7 OctoberWatch the full documentary
Leinster House • 7 October 2026 • 11:00amThe campaign is scheduled to present the case to TDs and Senators. The counter shows time remaining until the presentation.
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WHY THIS CAMPAIGN EXISTS

Treatment can be hard enough without having to leave the South for it.

Patients in Cork and across Munster have described travelling to Dublin or Galway for specialist stem cell treatment, adding distance, time away from family and practical strain to an already demanding treatment journey.

In 2026, the proposed development at CUH has been raised through parliamentary questions and HSE South West discussions. HSE regional minutes record discussion of a proposed €27 million Stem Cell Tissue Establishment and Aseptic Compounding Unit at CUH.

Cork University Hospital
The gapStem cell transplant services are currently centred in Dublin and Galway; campaign participants are seeking a service in Cork for the South.
The askProgress the facilities and capacity needed for Stem Cell Transplant & Cellular Therapy at Cork University Hospital.
The momentA Leinster House presentation is scheduled for 7 October 2026 with patient advocates, clinicians and international experts.
“Fighting cancer is exhausting enough without the added burden of traveling for treatment.”
— Dr Vitaliy Mykytiv, Consultant Haematologist at Cork University Hospital, in a public campaign statement
Mags McCarthy with campaign participants
WHY MAGS STARTED

One family's experience became a wider patient-access campaign.

Mags McCarthy's father underwent a stem cell transplant at St James's Hospital in Dublin. Public reporting describes six weeks as an inpatient followed by a further period close to the hospital for monitoring — an experience that led Mags to ask why patients in the South could not access this care closer to home.

She has since worked with patients, Cork clinicians, patient advocates and international specialists to bring the issue into public discussion. The campaign is now focused on a clear question: how can specialist transplant and cellular-therapy capacity be expanded at CUH?

ADD YOUR VOICE
10 seconds.
One name.

The campaign is collecting names from people who want to record their support for a Stem Cell Transplant & Cellular Therapy Centre at Cork University Hospital ahead of the 7 October presentation.

No account. No password. Your email is never shown publicly and is not added to campaign updates unless you separately choose that option.

[campaign_petition]
WATCH • LISTEN • READ

Hear the case from the people involved.

The full Cork TV Ireland programme, patient radio interviews, official HSE records and recent reporting are gathered here so visitors can understand the campaign in context.

Full Cork TV Ireland programme supplied to the campaign. Published here subject to Mags McCarthy's final approval.

Listen & verify

Cork's 96FM — Top Doctors Come To CUH To Back A Stem Cell Unit ↗Cork's 96FM — Cork Patients On Why Getting A Stem Cell Unit Is So Important ↗HSE — Parliamentary Question on a CUH transplant centre ↗HSE South West — Regional Health Forum minutes ↗
Newspaper article about the CUH stem cell campaign
IN THE NEWS

Patients are putting real experiences behind the headlines.

This print report follows a mother who underwent two stem cell transplants and joined the campaign for the CUH facility. The article also features Mags McCarthy, Senator Eileen Lynch and Dr Vitaliy Mykytiv.

The campaign has also received recent coverage from EchoLive and Agriland, alongside continuing discussion on Cork's 96FM.

EchoLive — Cork advocate to speak at Leinster House ↗Agriland — Running a stem cell lab campaign from a Cork family farm ↗
Independent.ie campaign coverage
National coverage

Reporting has highlighted the campaign and the proposed CUH facility.

Community supporters with CUH stem cell lab banner
Community voices

Supporters have been raising awareness publicly across Cork.

Cork 96FM campaign graphic
On the air

Cork's 96FM has carried interviews with Mags, patients and medical specialists.

WHAT HAPPENS TO YOUR NAME?

A simple public-support record, not a mailing-list trap.

The form records your name, email and location so the campaign can maintain a credible count and understand where support comes from. Email addresses are not displayed publicly.

Privacy summary: information submitted through the petition is used to maintain and validate the campaign's supporter record. The optional updates box is separate; leaving it unticked means the email should not be used for campaign marketing or updates.

Before public launch, the campaign should publish the final data-controller contact address, retention period and full privacy notice for GDPR purposes. No health information is requested by this form.

Add my name