Backlog in readings means hundreds of CervicalCheck smear samples have expired

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

A bottleneck has been created after the Government offered women the chance to be re-tested if they were concerned about their results.

Samples cannot be read by a laboratory if they are more than six weeks old and the backlog has meant many have expired while waiting to be processed.

Figures in today's Irish Times show the number of Cervical Check smears jumped by more than 50% between July 2017 and last June.