§ Mr. VazTo ask the Secretary of State for Health what is the average waiting time for results from cervical smear tests by region and district; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mrs. Virginia BottomleyThis information is not available in the form requested. Health authorities are asked to ensure that laboratories return results of smear tests to the smear-taker within one month. A survey of laboratory backlogs and workload carried out in the second half of 1990 indicated that around two thirds of laboratories were meeting that target in July 1990. In those areas where backlogs existed the average processing time was 7.5 weeks.
§ Mr. VazTo ask the Secretary of State for Health how many cervical smear tests have been carried out on women for each year since 1980(a) per region and (b) per district; and if he will state by (i) district and (ii) region how many are still to be dealt with.
§ Mrs. Virginia BottomleyInformation on the number of cervical smear tests carried out on women for each year from 1980 to 1989 is given in the table by region. The 1988–89 figure is for 193 out of the 200 laboratories which submitted a return in that year. The information is collected from laboratories. It is not possible or relevant to produce it by district. Smears taken from women in a particular region are sometimes analysed by laboratories in other regions.
Information on the number of smears outstanding was collected for the 1988–89 year, but the quality and completeness of the data were such that no useful figures can be produced.
Improvements are being set in hand to improve the quality of this new data collection system.
239W
Cervical Cytology Smears examined by Regional Health Authority Thousands England Regional Health Authority 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987–88 1988–89 Northern 152 158 154 172 186 226 224 270 300 Yorkshire 199 211 204 224 242 271 266 299 305 Trent 275 288 281 297 320 359 343 393 403 East Anglia 101 104 104 121 130 145 144 159 185 North West Thames 263 261 244 260 264 302 297 317 375 North East Thames 221 230 254 275 277 316 308 325 326 South East Thames 223 225 218 233 246 282 284 317 326 South West Thames 187 193 182 195 208 231 229 248 267 Wessex 155 160 160 170 182 208 211 233 233 Oxford 137 137 133 151 164 195 195 222 238 South Western 154 161 157 173 102 214 219 247 247 West Midlands 291 292 289 310 342 395 403 465 507 Mersey 90 93 91 104 118 138 154 203 212 North Western 333 328 322 347 370 399 416 389 392 Special Health Authority — — — — — — — — 11 England 2,789 2,850 2,809 3,046 3,245 3,696 3,709 4,099 4,326 Notes:
These figures relate to smears analysed by laboratories in each region.
Smears taken from women in one region are in some cases analysed in laboratories in other regions.
Figures for 1988–89 are for those 193 laboratories which submitted a return.
§ Sir David PriceTo ask the Secretary of State for Health what progress has been made by the national screening programme for breast and cervical cancer towards achieving its objectives; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mrs. Virginia BottomleyThis is the first country in the EC to have a nationwide call and recall scheme for both breast and cervical cancer screening.
Breast Screening Programme
Between 1987 and 1990 £55 million was allocated in England to set up and run the nationwide breast screening programme. Women aged between 50 and 64 will be invited every three years for mammographic screening. Specialised screening centres are now operating over most of the country and all eligible women throughout England should have been invited for screening by 1993. Figures for those centres operational for the whole of 1988–89 indicate that around 70 per cent. of women receiving invitations are accepting them. A report issued in January 1991 by the Advisory Committee on Breast Cancer Screening supported the current programme and concluded that it could reduce mortality in the eligible age group by around a quarter by the year 2000.
Cervical Screening Programme
Computerised call and recall systems were implemented in all district health authorities by April 1988. Women aged between 20 and 64 should have been invited for screening by 1993 and will be recalled at least every five years. Health authorities must ensure that all abnormal smears are followed up and facilities for investigation and treatment are available.
In the first six months since the introduction of the GP's contract 54 per cent. of GPs received payment for 80 per cent. coverage of women screened and 35 per cent. for 50 per cent. coverage.
The NHS has set up the national co-ordinating network for the cervical screening programme which supports 240W managers and others responsible at local level. £95,000 has been awarded to the network for each financial year 1990–91 and 1992–93.