The National Cancer Screening Service (NCSS) has today announced that following 12 months of operation on an open access system of screening, Cervical Check – The National Cervical Screening Programme will move to organised, population-based screening by invitation, for women aged 25 to 60.
Since launched on 1 September 2008, CervicalCheck has proven very successful with uptake rates remaining consistently high. Over 4,250 GPs, practice nurses and medical practitioners in over 1,400 locations nationwide are registered to take smear tests as part of the CervicalCheck programme.
Commenting on the transition, Tony O’Brien Chief Executive Officer of the NCSS said: “Population-based screening programmes operate on an active call and re-call system, where the programme invites selected cohorts of the population for screening at specific times and re-calls them when their next test is due. CervicalCheck remained on an open access system for the initial 12 months to ensure that the initial expected interest in the Programme could be effectively accommodated during the first year of screening. Those women that presented for screening since 1 September are now part of an appropriate and organised screening cycle. It has always been the intent of CervicalCheck to operate on a population-based approach to screening in accordance with best international practice, to maximise target population coverage.
“Following an initial 12 month period of operation, it is an appropriate time to make this adjustment. The Programme must now focus on motivating those women who have not proactively attended for screening. A successful national programme in Ireland, based on 80% uptake, has the potential to cut the incidence of cervical cancer by up to 80%. This transition will ensure that an effective and efficient approach to screening is maintained and that the essential target uptake of 80% is achieved.”
From 1 September 2009, CervicalCheck will operate on an organised call, re-call and opt-in system inviting eligible women for screening through a selection process based on age. Women attending for a CervicalCheck smear test will do so with a written invitation to screening from the Programme. The September introduction of invitation-based screening will allow smeartaker practices and clinics to accommodate any appointments scheduled during August.
There will be exemptions to invitation-only screening, including women over the age of 60 who have never had a smear test and women (regardless of age) undergoing colposcopy treatment follow-up. In addition, women aged 25 to 60 who have not had a smear test in the previous three years can avail of a simple opt-in facility either through online registration on www.cervicalcheck.ie, by completing and returning a registration form by free post or by calling CervicalCheck on Freephone 1800 45 45 55. Following this, CervicalCheck will issue an invitation to the woman inviting her to make an appointment with a registered smeartaker of her choice.
Any woman that has availed of a CervicalCheck smear test since 1 September 2008 will automatically be re-called when her next smear test is due, in three or five years depending on her age.
CervicalCheck has developed a Cervical Screening Register (CSR) of eligible women aged 25 to 60 through information received from the Department of Social and Family Affairs, self registration, cytology and colposcopy details. Women will be invited for screening based on age, ensuring that demand for screening is spread evenly. The CSR has the functionality to identify women in age cohorts based on their date of birth allowing the Programme to target lower uptake age groups if needed.
An organised approach to screening based on call, re-call will also ensure that the delivery of population screening is spread evenly over the three to five year screening cycle, allowing the Programme to plan and respond to the demand for cytology and colposcopy services more evenly.
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