Ruth Maguire MSP: I'm cancer-free

Ruth Maguire MSP is cancer-free and preparing to return to work, Holyrood can reveal.

The SNP politician has been on medical leave since receiving a diagnosis of secondary cervical cancer late last year.

She now says she is "excited to be well enough to return to work" after specialists said her treatment was successful.

Maguire told Holyrood: "I have had so many kind messages and cards and people telling me that they've been thinking of me and keeping me in their prayers. I've felt so supported and my family and friends have been magnificent, but constituents and community members have been just lovely.

"I'm looking forward to going out and proactively reconnecting with constituents and groups again."

Maguire, who represents Cunninghame South, is the deputy convener of the Standards, Procedures and Public Appointments Committee, co-convener of the cross-party group on commercial sexual exploitation and a member of the cross-party group on nuclear disarmament.

She was first elected in 2016 and diagnosed with cervical cancer in May 2021.

Maguire returned to work the year after but had to step back again when the disease returned.

She will not stand for re-election in 2026 but has vowed to serve her constituents "with diligence and compassion" for the remainder of her term.

In her latest round of treatment, Maguire underwent chemotherapy at the Beatson West of Scotland Cancer Centre in Glasgow.

Doctors said she is not currently in need of further treatment.

Maguire will return to work in her constituency in the coming weeks, before going back to the Scottish Parliament after recess.

She said: "I have a long-standing interest in women's health, in particular with access to healthcare, and having more first-hand experience and talking with patients and staff over the past few months has given me another fresh insight and indeed impetus into work that may be needed in regards to women's health and wellbeing."