Plans for roll-out of national cervical screening scheme unveiled today

PLANS for the roll-out of a national cervical screening programme will be unveiled at today’s launch of the Strategy for Cancer Control in Ireland.

The Irish Cancer Society (ICS), which welcomed the move, said it now wanted the Department of Health to say when women could expect to receive their invitations for free screenings.

The ICS believes it should take between 18 and 24 months to introduce the screening programme.

The Health Service Executive (HSE) has worked out a formal methodology for providing screening that forms part of the 2006 strategy to be launched by Health Minister Mary Harney in Dublin.

But before the programme can be rolled out the HSE needs a database of all women aged 25 to 65, a pay deal worked out with GPs and enough cytologists to examine the smear tests.

Quality assurance procedures will also have to be put in place and the HSE will have to ensure that there are enough colposcopy clinics to deal with abnormal smears.

Ireland has one of the highest rates of cervical cancer in Western Europe.

There are around 1,000 new cases of cervical pre-cancer, 200 cases of cervical cancer and 70 deaths from cervical cancer in Ireland every year.

A screening programme that will reduce the incidence of cervical cancer by up to 80% was promised by the Government nine years ago. Its cost is estimated at around 16 million.

ICS chief executive John McCormack said women had been let down by successive Governments which failed to implement a properly organised free nationwide cervical cancer screening programme.

“The provision of a cervical cancer screening is a basic health care service,” he said, “We must not let women suffer and die needlessly from this wholly preventable disease.”

The strategy makes recommendations in relation to the organisation, governance, quality assurance and accreditation across a broad range of cancer services.

Information on cervical smears and/or cervical cancer screening is available on the freefone National Cancer Helpline on 1800 200 700 during office hours and up to 9pm on Tuesdays.