Background

About Us

MMI Vision

MMI recognise everyone’s experience of myeloma is unique – our vision is to be the trusted partner supporting you on your journey

MMI Mission
To inspire hope, promote awareness and contribute to health and well-being by providing support to every patient, carer and healthcare professional dealing with myeloma through education, advocacy and research.

MMI Values 

Our core values guide our day to day behaviours, our decisions, our actions and our relationships with patients, family members, carers and healthcare professionals. These core values preserve what is special about MMI and provide us with a compass to navigate both strategic evolution and our day to day actions.

Patient Centred – respectful of, and responsive to, individual patient preferences, needs and values

Ethical & Transparent – open and transparent in all our dealings

Welcoming & Inclusive – all are welcomed to be part of a community built on empathy

Collaborative – working with our partners with a common goal of advancing myeloma care

Multiple Myeloma Ireland is the only charity organisation focused on Multiple Myeloma in Ireland.

 

MMI received charity status in July 2013. Our charity no is (RCN) 20082598.

Board & Medical Advisors to the Board

Meet The Team

Anne Fitzgerald

Anne Fitzgerald

Treasurer

Anne joined the first Multiple Myeloma Support Group in 2008 after her husband was diagnosed with Multiple Myeloma in 2007. On establishment of the first Multiple Myeloma Ireland Board, Anne joined as assistant treasurer, and has continued in this role since.

Anne previously worked in the Department of Justice for a number of years and currently works in the office of a  building contractor.

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TBC

Assistant Treasurer

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Mary Kelly

Mary Kelly

Chairperson

Mary Kelly is a Registered Advanced Nurse Practitioner in Haematology.

Mary set up Ireland’s first Multiple Myeloma support group in 2008 and has organised many awareness and educational campaigns to raise awareness and support for patients and their families living with multiple myeloma.  She also established the Multiple Myeloma Ireland Board and was instrumental in gaining charity status for Multiple Myeloma Ireland in 2013. Mary is a past Chair of the Board.

Ann Fleming

Ann Fleming

Vice- Chair

Ann is a retired primary teacher who joined the Board in September 2019. She has been living well with Multiple Myeloma since her diagnosis in 2016. In 2017 she organised a fund-raising event amongst friends and family to raise funds and awareness for Multiple Myeloma Ireland. Ann has been instrumental in re-establishing a multiple myeloma support group in the Dublin area. She has also been involved in the Multiple Myeloma Podcast Series.

Fionnuala Duffy

Fionnuala Duffy

Secretary

Fionnuala joined the Board in September 2021 and brings extensive experience from her career at senior level in the Department of Health and the Health Service Executive. Fionnuala is interested in patient advocacy and completed the Myeloma Patients Europe Advocacy Development Programme in 2022.

Niamh Murray

Niamh Murray

Board Member

Niamh joined the Board in 2021. Niamh is interested in patient advocacy and increasing access to new drugs and testing protocols for myeloma patients. She brings experience from her previous career as a research scientist.

Dermot O’Leary

Dermot O’Leary

Board Member

Dermot has been a member of the Board since 2019. He is a dairy farmer with a background in the dairy CoOp industry. He has been living well with Myeloma since his diagnosis in 2016. Dermot was central to the recent establishment of a support group in the Cork/Kerry region in association with Arc House.

Mary O' Brien

Mary O' Brien

Board Member

Mary Joined the Board in November 2023 Mary joined the Multiple Myeloma Support Group in Tullamore in 2011 after her husband Joe was diagnosed with myeloma. She has been an active member since then and has assisted in the activities of the support group.

Mary retired as a Community Nurse in 2021. Mary brings her valuable experience in patient advocacy to the Board.

Ally Byrne

Ally Byrne

Board Member

Ally recently joined the Board, she first heard about Multiple Myeloma when her husband was diagnosed in 2021. Since then, Ally has been creating awareness, fundraising and supporting patients and families of those with Multiple Myeloma. In 2022, she set up a private Facebook Group for patients and carers/family members of those with Myeloma, this year the group has recently started to meet over zoom for chats and informative discussions from guest speakers focusing on the area of research.  

Ally is passionate about creating awareness for research and encouraging people to support cancer research. 

Orlaith Cormican

Orlaith Cormican

Board Member

Orlaith Cormican RGN, Bsc, MHsc, Post Graduate Certificate in Cancer Care and Haematology

Orlaith is currently employed as an Assistant Lecturer in TUS. Orlaith’s background is in haematology and she has previously worked a Clinical Nurse Specialist in Haematology at the Midlands Regional Hospital in Tullamore. Orlaith has worked in cancer care and haematology for over ten years. She is currently completing a PhD via the HRB SPHeRE programme entitled “Exploring psychosocial vulnerability in carers of patients with a chronic haematological malignancy. Her research areas of interest include chronic haematological malignancies and quality of life in this area. She also serves as a board member with Multiple Myeloma Ireland.

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TBC

Board Member

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Pat Gately

Pat Gately

Board Member

Pat joined the board in November 2022. He has been living well with Multiple Myeloma since 2016.Pat is a retired primary school principal living in Wexford. He imitated the setting up the Wexford Support Group with Frank Lilis in 2016. The group meets monthly in the Hope Centre in Enniscorthy.

Prof Paul Browne

Prof Paul Browne

Medical Advisor to the Board

Paul spent over 27 years as Consultant Haematologist at St. James’s Hospital, and more recently was Professor of Haematology at Trinity College Dublin.

Throughout his career, he has maintained a special interest in myeloma, participating in clinical trials and international study groups, and collaborating with many colleagues in Ireland and abroad to improve care and access to new treatments for myeloma patients.

He set up the myeloma stem cell transplant programme at St James’s over 25 years ago, and along with colleagues at many Irish centres, has contributed to delivering stem cell therapy to well over 1000 patients with myeloma.

He is committed to working with MMI particularly on the issue of making the newest effective treatments available in a timely way to Irish patients with myeloma.

Prof. Siobhán Glavey

Prof. Siobhán Glavey

Medical Advisor to the Board

Professor John Quinn

Professor John Quinn

Medical Advisor to the Board

Prof. Michael O’Dwyer

Prof. Michael O’Dwyer

Medical Advisor to the Board

Past MMI Board Members

Previous Members

Board MemberMaura DowlingBoard Member Siobhán Kelleher
Board Member Dr Peter O’GormanBoard MemberHelen Brennan
Board MemberDr Patrick HaydenBoard Member Mervyn Bourne
Board MemberTrudie RowanBoard MemberMary Dunne
Board MemberJoe O’BrienBoard MemberDeirdre Brennan
Board Member Colm BrennanBoard MemberDr Rajpal
SecretaryGeraldine DalyBoard MemberDermot Sheriff
Chairperson Geraldine WalpoleVice-Chair Fidelma Hackett
Board Member Michelle O ConnellBoard Member Kevin O Regan
Board Member Liam McManus

Links To Organisations