§ 10. Ms Linda Perham (Ilford, North)What plans he has to ensure all women over 65 years old are informed of their right to self-refer for breast screening. [102271]
§ The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Health (Yvette Cooper)The availability of screening for older women is widely publicised. In particular, the NHS breast screening programme is working with Age Concern to encourage older women to request screening. It has produced a leaflet, "65 or over: You are still entitled to breast screening", which is widely available from general practitioners' surgeries, clinics, some post offices and some shops.
§ Ms PerhamI am grateful for that answer, and I welcome the Government's co-operation with Age Concern to publicise the right to self-referral for women aged over 65, who form the group at highest risk. If take-up by older women increases—my local unit in Epping has reported 500 more women from that age group referring themselves over the past four years—will my hon. Friend address the problem of resources available for breast screening services? Of course, I welcome the extra funding that the Government have put into those services.
§ Yvette CooperI congratulate my hon. Friend on her work on raising awareness of breast cancer screening and the rights of older women to self-refer. She is right that the number of older women requesting screening is increasing—from 39,000 in 1994–95 to nearly 75,000 in 1997–98. It is precisely to deal with such issues that the Government have set up working groups to examine work force issues and ensure that we maintain the quality of the screening programme for older women and for those covered by the automated recall programme.
§ Mr. David Tredinnick (Bosworth)Does the Minister accept that those who are screened and who are unfortunate enough to be found positive may often find relief through changes in diet or complementary techniques, such as traditional Chinese medicine or homeopathy? Will she assure me that those treatments will not be forgotten when she addresses the issue?
§ Yvette CooperThe hon. Gentleman is quite right to say that many people, particularly those with severe cancer, seek and can find relief from alternative therapies. The Government certainly take complementary therapies seriously.