about marie keating

Following their mother Marie’s death in 1998 Ronan Keating and each member of the Keating family promised that they would do everything they could to bring an end to breast cancer. They committed to provide all women and their families with the necessary information to prevent cancer or detect it at it’s earliest stages. Their collective aim as “making cancer less frightening by enlightening”. The Marie Keating Foundation is the realisation of a family’s dedication- it is a promise to themselves in action.

What we do

Public awareness

The Foundation, through its mobile information units, reaches out to as many people as possible. The Foundation believes that by doing so, more people will not only become more aware of the risk factors but also become our partners in spreading our education message. We have in-unit information presentations as well as prosthetic teaching aids on board in order to educate, show and highlight the importance of early detection and self awareness. The unit is equipped with take home information leaflets on each of the key cancers and our trained nurses provide the public with practical advice on healthy lifestyle choices.

Our nurses also visit workplaces and community groups as part of our health promotion message. They offer advice and help to groups of men and women as part of annual health days or as a once off assistance to staff. Arrangements can also be made for staff to speak to our nurse individually and in strict confidence.

Focussing on the key cancers, the Foundation invests in a number of major media campaigns throughout the year. October is internationally recognised as breast cancer awareness month and the Foundation mounts a month long targeted campaign using radio and print media to communicate the message of early detection. Other campaigns focus on men’s cancers with our Men Keeping Fit campaign, as well as other specific more targeted ones.

Education

The Foundation, in recognising the importance of education of young people in reducing the prevalence of cancer, invested in the development of a schools programme targeted at senior level students in addressing the facts, risks, and the need for early intervention. The programme can be adapted for use with other young people in different settings.

The comfort fund

This fund assists those in financial difficulty as a direct result of their illness. Working in close partnership with the Irish Breast Care Nurses Association, the Foundation provides financial support for practical assistance with childminding or transport costs, hotel accommodation before or after treatment, or even for a well deserved weekend break. We consider that this service is essential in minimising the day to day problems facing women during treatment, in addition to the already existing trauma and uncertainty.

The oncology waiting room refurbishment programme

Where the need arises, the Foundation refurbishes hospital oncology waiting rooms in making them more comfortable for patients who use them, often for long and protracted periods of time.