FG: 2,000 cancer cases could go undetected

THE row over the Government’s decision to select a US company to process Ireland’s cervical smear tests deepened last night after a Fine Gael TD claimed cancer could go undetected in up to 2,000 women.

Quest Diagnostics issued a statement accusing FG health spokesman Dr James Reilly of “distortion of facts” after he issued a statement saying a comparative study had shown that Quest “had a 30% lower pick-up rate” on high grade pre-invasive cervical cancer than St Luke’s Hospital in Dublin.

“If 300,000 smear tests are sent to Quest, this miss rate could see almost 2,000 women have their pre-invasive cervical cancer go undetected,” Dr Reilly said.