‘Political failure’ blamed for tragic death of NI mum denied access to cancer treatment close to home

:A vivid depiction of CAR T-cell therapy in action, showcasing a genetically engineered CAR T-cell (left) targeting and binding to cancer cells (right) via specialized receptors.

A young Co Down mum battling cancer died after being forced to travel to London for treatment that was available just 60 miles down the road, councillors have been told.

Newry, Mourne and Down District Council (NMDDC) heard that Catherine Sherry, who passed away earlier this year, faced “repeated air travel while she was severely immuno-suppressed”, which ultimately weakened the 42-year-old and left her unable to fight the infection that led to her death.

The tragedy was the focus of a motion brought before the council this week amid growing anger over how the mother-of-three had to undergo CAR-T cell treatment in London, despite the therapy being routinely available in Dublin.

The Council approved the motion linking the exhausting travel to the toll on Mrs Sherry’s health, while a shorter journey from her home to a Dublin hospital might have spared her life.

Bringing the motion forward on behalf of the Sherry family, SDLP councillor Killian Feehan said:

“I must commend the incredible strength and bravery of Fergal Sherry and his and Catherine’s sons, who have been campaigning for CAR-T cell treatment to be made available to patients in the North at St James’s Hospital in Dublin.

“I can’t begin to imagine how difficult it was to lose their wife and mother in such circumstances on 12 May 2025. Catherine’s treatment was working, but the repeated air travel while she was severely immuno-suppressed weakened Catherine and left her unable to fight the infection which led to her death. She passed away far from home and far from her children.”

NMDDC SDLP councillor Killian Feehan

He continued:

“And here is the devastating truth — the treatment that Catherine needed was just 60 miles down the road in Dublin, but she wasn’t able to access it. Why?

“Because there is still no agreement between the Department of Health (DoH) in the North and their counterpart in Dublin to allow Northern patients to access this specialist therapy in the Republic, despite it being routinely delivered in St James’s Hospital.

“This is not a capacity or funding issue — it is quite simply a political failure. No mother should have to leave her children behind to fight for her life in another country. No family should get a call to say ‘she is going to die’ when the system itself has failed to give her the best fighting chance close to home.”

Mrs Sherry died at King’s College Hospital, London, while receiving CAR-T cell therapy — a personalised form of immunotherapy that reprogrammes a patient’s own immune cells to fight cancer.

Her aunts, Ann and Marie, who looked after her children during her treatment in London, were present in the council chamber in support of the motion.

The Sherry family has since led a campaign to change NHS policy, arguing that the emotional and physical toll of long-distance travel for treatment played a direct role in Catherine’s untimely death.

Cllr Feehan added:

“Nobody should have to go through the experience of the Sherry family, particularly when this treatment is available so close to home.

“We have seen the success of cross-border cancer services in the past, allowing patients to access care closer to home and within reach of their families. I believe we need to see the same approach with CAR-T cell therapy.

“We commend Fergal and his sons, who are now advocating for the treatment to be made available to other cancer patients from the North in Dublin, and acknowledge that the Department of Health has an existing Memorandum of Understanding on all-island cancer services signed following the Good Friday Agreement.

“We further recognise that CAR-T therapy will not be available in Northern Ireland until 2031 at the earliest. The SDLP is urging Health Ministers Mike Nesbitt (NI) and Jennifer Carroll MacNeill (RoI) to begin urgent negotiations to make the changes necessary so that patients can access this treatment in Ireland, without having to travel long distances and with the support of their family around them.

“We can all make a collective call on government to act now on an all-island path for CAR-T therapy. The infrastructure exists, the expertise exists — the only thing that is missing is political will.”