Seven cancer patients have now died after scans were missed or misread at University Hospital Kerry, health officials have confirmed.

It has previously emerged that 11 patients had an 'unreported finding' following scans.

The scans were read by the same locum consultant radiologist between March 2016 and July 2017.

A review of 46,000 tests - including CT scans, ultrasounds and chest x-rays - began after the errors were spotted in the summer of 2017.

It found the 11 patients suffered a delayed cancer diagnosis, which had a "serious impact" on their health.

When the review was published last December, it stated that four of the patients had died.

The South/South West Hospital Group has now confirmed that since then a further three patients have died.

In a statement, the hospital group stressed that all 11 patients had appropriate care and treatment following diagnosis.

The statement adds: "The hospital and the South /South West Hospital Group would again like to apologise sincerely and unreservedly to all the patients and families harmed by this.”

The consultant involved was placed on administrative leave in late July 2017 and resigned in October of that year.

In the review published last year, the authors say their findings "do not imply that the harm caused was exclusively attributable to the consultant radiologist whose work was reviewed".

They add that would be a matter for the Medical Council and outside the remit of the review team.