A leading cancer expert has said throwing more money at the Irish cancer services will not fix the problems.
Speaking on RTÉ Radio's Saturday View, Professor John Crown, consultant oncologist at St Vincent's Hospital, said cancer care is mal-resourced not under-resourced.
He criticised the way the Health Service Executive and the Government have handled the development of centres of excellence for cancer treatment.
He said these centres will vastly improve patients' chances of recovery, adding that Ireland is currently not meeting any international standards for the treatment of tumours.
Prof Crown said he supports the concentration of cancer care at centres of excellence and acknowledged it appears to cause pain to local communities who think they are losing something, but he said they are not, they are gaining something.
Meanwhile, the Taoiseach has said it would be totally irresponsible of the Government not to take the advice of world-class renowned experts on how to best provide for the safety and health of women.
Speaking after addressing the Association of European Journalists Congress in Dublin, Mr Ahern said it is a dilemma for the Government but best international practice had to be followed.
Mr Ahern said the only interest he had in this debate is putting the investment, resources and equipment in place to look after women's health.
He said if the experts tell him that multidisciplinary teams are the best way of protecting women and saving lives, then that is the only interest he has.
He said the issue of capacity is a judgement call for the HSE.
