Member's statement: World Lymphoma Awareness Day: Catherine Sherry
Member's statement by Mr Justin McNulty on .
- MLA
- Mr Justin McNulty
- Party at the time
- Social Democratic and Labour Party
- Date
- 15 September 2026
- Type
- Member's statement
- Business
- Members' Statements
- Heading
- World Lymphoma Awareness Day: Catherine Sherry
- Assembly identifier
- Official Report component 5705520
Read the official Assembly record
Text
Today, 15 September, is World Lymphoma Awareness Day. Two years ago, Catherine Sherry was diagnosed with lymphoma. She fought her illness bravely for nine months until her passing on 12 May 2025. On the day of her funeral, Armagh flags fluttered in the breeze as mourners stood in glorious sunshine in the graveyard of St Teresa's Church, Tullyherron. Hundreds gathered in the packed chapel to pay their respects to a young mother who had touched so many hearts. Catherine was a beautiful person in every way, and she will be sorely missed by all who knew and loved her. In St Killian's GAA club, after her funeral, her mother came to me and said that Catherine's last text message to her was, "Come on, Armagh". Catherine's husband, Fergal, and their three young sons, Manus, Tomás and Donal, are courageously and busily getting on with life, work, school, sport and music. Sadly, Catherine passed away at King's College Hospital, London, where she was being treated for lymphoma. Catherine's treatment in London worked — she defeated the cancer — but the travel took its toll, and she was unable to fight the infection that ultimately led to her passing. The clinical guidelines advise against travel when undergoing chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T-cell therapy, yet Catherine Sherry had no option but to get on a plane and travel to London. Where was the emphasis on patient safety? Catherine did not want to travel to England and leave her young sons and wider family support at a time when their love and support was needed most, but she had no option. When she asked why she could not have the specialist CAR T-cell therapy that she needed closer to home, she was told that it would not be available until 2031 at the earliest and that there was no arrangement in place for patients from the North to be treated in Dublin or Galway. I say it again: that inequality of treatment just is not good enough. We are already five years behind having the treatment that is available in the South and in hospitals throughout England, Scotland and Wales. We cannot wait another five years-plus to have it available here. Catherine Sherry did not want other patients and their families to face the same circumstances. She said that no other mother should have to leave her children behind to fight for her life far from home. Help to bring life-saving CAR T-cell therapy closer to home by signing and sharing the petition that her family have created in her honour. It is free to sign and share. We need names on the board in support of that important campaign and a big push during September, which is Blood Cancer Awareness Month. Please sign and share the petition.
464 words. Text as published by the Northern Ireland Assembly.
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