Call to increase BreastCheck Screening for over 70s - Smyth

The Government is being urged to extend BreastCheck Screening to cover women over 69 years of age.

Highlighting its urgency, Fianna Fáil Deputy Niamh Smyth says: “Early detection is key and 70% of breast cancers occur in women over 50 years of age with the five-year survival rate settling on 82%. When broken down, this figure reveals survival at one year after diagnosis is 99% for stage one, while this drops significantly to 44% when diagnosed at stage four.”

The incidence and risk of breast cancer in women increases with age and the National Screening Advisory Committee is looking at expanding breast screening to women between 45 and 74 years of age. "Delaying this policy change is inconceivable and the care of women’s health in this area must be prioritised.”

An area of further concern in screening is the backlog generated by the pausing of the service during Covid, which has extended the screening round out to three years rather than the normal two years. "Returning to a two-year cycle as quickly as possible is necessary to reduce the risk of breast cancer," said Deputy Smyth.

The increasing life expectancy of women now averages at 84 years. "The higher incidence of this form of cancer as women age emphasises the need to extend the screening age. How can breast screening stop at 69 when, on average, women have over 12 years of quality life ahead of them?” asked the Bailieborough-based TD.

Deputy Smyth concluded by asking the Minister for Health and his Department to examine and rectify this anomaly at once. “Exposing woman’s health and life to the threat of breast cancer when early detection has such an enormous success rate cannot be countenanced. Now is the time for progressive action and thinking,” she said.