Screening of Irish language film Burkitt in School of Medicine

Professor Paul Murray from the School of Medicine and Dr Sorcha de Brún from the School of Irish, English and Communication, in conjunction with the Limerick Digital Cancer Research Centre, co-hosted the Limerick screening of Irish language TG4 funded film, Burkitt on Tuesday 11th February, with Belfast film maker Éanna Mac Cana in attendance. The film is a film essay and creative documentary on the life and work of Fermanagh born surgeon Dr Denis Burkitt (1911-1993) that examines Burkitt's discovery and treatment of Burkitt's Lymphoma cancer, looking at a career spanning periods spent in Ireland, the UK and Sub-Saharan Africa. 

This film was attended by the film's writer and director Éanna Mac Cana, and the UL screening was part of the national and international tour. A primary objective of the UL screening was to show how film, language and artwork can be used creatively to increase public awareness and knowledge of cancer research as well as patient experiences of the disease. The film also informs the public about the work of leading Irish researchers, past and present. Amongst the women researchers whose work is highlighted in this Irish language film is that of Irish virologist Dr Yvonne Barr (1932-2016). 

The screening was opened by Professor Colum Dunne, Head of the School of Medicine and was followed by a Q and A session with Professor Murray and Dr de Brún, who was involved in the making of the film. During the Q and A session, attendees discussed how the film succeeds in showing how time and space made it possible for Burkitt, and other researchers of the day, to make their groundbreaking discoveries. Another question from the audience pointed to the global inequalities in healthcare, and increasing global insecurity around access.

The event was attended by students, staff and members from the University of Limerick, as well as several health professionals from University Hospital Limerick and the PPI network (Patient and Public Involvement in Research). Upcoming screenings of Burkitt are scheduled for Oxford Brookes University, the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine and Solas Nua's Capital Irish Film Festival in Washington DC.