A 39-year-old woman whose cervical smear test was incorrectly reported as negative, before she was later diagnosed with cancer and had to have a hysterectomy, has sued in the High Court.

Labour Party health spokesperson Alan Kelly has called on the HSE to honour its commitment to women who underwent a repeat smear test that they would have results back in four to six weeks.

The HSE first became aware of thousands of women who will now need repeat smear checks as far back as November, the Tánaiste has told the Dáil.

Concerns about delays in the results of smear tests for cervical cancer are not new.

Hundreds of CervicalCheck smear samples have expired due to a backlog created in the wake of the scandal.