Dr Claire O'Donnell's Cancer Researcher Story
"Our main aim is to explore and look at the current situation around integrated care services for people living with metastatic cancer, that is cancer which has spread from its original location to another part of the body. "
"We want to provide holistic care during their care transitions from the acute cancer services to community-based palliative and supportive care.”
Dr Claire O’Donnell and her team at the University of Limerick were awarded a Cancer Survivorship Seed Funding Award in 2025. This Irish Cancer Society award funds outstanding research projects which seek to address unmet needs in cancer survivorship, with kind support from GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) and AstraZeneca.
The project being led by Dr O’Donnell is focused on addressing the need for integrated care for patients with metastatic cancer.
“We know that healthcare professionals across Ireland are doing their best providing quality care every day,” says Dr O’Donnell, “and there may be ways we can help to further improve integrated care provision for patients with metastatic cancer.
"This group of patients experience a lot of movement between a lot of services over a prolonged period of time, which can be challenging to navigate.
“For example, currently someone with metastatic breast cancer will meet with their oncologist in the hospital, physiotherapist in the community, also be linked into palliative care for symptom control along with other healthcare professionals supporting other aspects of care."
“These are all different services, and they often aren’t under the one umbrella service. While these services work closely together, they are often provided by different organisations. Our research is exploring how greater integration and coordination across these services could further improve the experience of people living with metastatic cancer.”
Dr O’Donnell was drawn to cancer research after starting her career as a general registered nurse. After joining the School of Nursing and Midwifery at the University of Limerick in 2007, she continued to build her research expertise and, in subsequent years, became increasingly involved in cancer research through collaborative work at University Hospital Limerick.
“My passion for cancer research stems from a professional aspect of meeting cancer patients when I worked clinically, and from a personal aspect too – I don’t think there’s a family that hasn’t been touched by cancer in some way.”
The area of survivorship care is of particular interest to Dr O’Donnell, as it focuses on helping people to achieve the best possible quality of life and wellbeing following a cancer diagnosis.
“Survivorship is really interesting to me,” says Dr O’Donnell. “Isn’t it good to think that medical science has advanced so much that people are living for longer after a cancer diagnosis supported by advances in treatment, symptom management, and integrated care services. That motivates me, along with wanting to improve the care experience and outcomes of people living with metastatic cancer.”
As for general perceptions of cancer research, Dr O’Donnell says the development of new treatments is an important part of cancer research, but it’s crucial to remember that research extends beyond the development of new treatment pathways.
"What I’d like people to know is that cancer research is about much more than developing new treatments," she says. "While discovering new treatments is incredibly important, research into survivorship, supportive care, and quality of life is equally important in ensuring people receive the best possible care and support throughout their cancer journey."
