The Health Service Executive is carrying out an external review of the practice of one consultant radiologist within the radiology breast service in the Midland Regional Hospital in Portlaoise.
The consultant in question has been placed on administrative leave for the duration of the review which is expected to be completed within a month.
All mammography and breast ultrasound work will be carried out at St Vincent's Hospital, Dublin, pending the outcome of the review.
The HSE has said it will make direct contact with any patient affected.
Meanwhile Minister for Health Mary Harney (left) has welcomed the decision of Barringtons Hospital in Co Limerick to agree to her request to suspend its delivery of breast cancer services.
On RTÉ Radio's News At One, Ms Harney said the move followed concern relating to what is described as the adequacy and management of care of ten women who attended the services at the hospital from September 2003.
She said she has been concerned that there is no accreditation and licensing regime here for private providers of health care and that is why she has established a commission - due to report early next year - to advise on how best to regulate the provision of health care.
The medical profession and the Irish Cancer Society have been reacting to the suspension.
Dr Ragnish Guphta, Consultant Medical Oncologist at the Midwestern Regional Hospital in Limerick, said the problem centred on triple assessment for breast cancer.
The Managing Director of Barringtons Hospital Denis Calahane said that a woman attended the hospital but the mistakes were made in the pathology laboratory at University College Hospital in Galway.
Mr Calahane said no one was telling the laboratory at UCHG to close down.
He said it would be more constructive if the private and public health care systems worked towards patient care in unity.
The Irish Cancer Society has welcomed the decision by the Department of Health and Children to suspend breast cancer services at the hospital.
The society has also called for the recently published Quality Assurance Standards for breast cancer services to be implemented without delay by the HSE.
