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Breast Cancer: Screening

Volume 474: debated on Wednesday 26 March 2008

To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many breast cancer screenings there were in (a) Tamworth and (b) Staffordshire in each of the last five years. (193624)

The information requested is not available in the format requested. However, data for the national health service screening programme: coverage of women aged 53-64 for Staffordshire based primary care trusts (PCTs), at 31 March 2003 to 2007 has been set out in the following table.

2003

2004

2005

2006

2007

North Staffordshire PCT1

Eligible population2

16,178

16,322

16,480

16,690

16,885

Women screened (less than 3 years since last test)

12,291

12,902

12,971

13,404

13,654

Coverage (less than 3 years since last test) (percentage)

76.0

79.0

78.7

80.3

80.9

South Staffordshire PCT1

Eligible population2

45,554

46,029

46,623

47,245

48,008

Women screened (less than 3 years since last test)

37,594

35,493

36,721

36,857

39,364

Coverage (less than 3 years since last test) (percentage)

82.5

77.1

78.8

78.0

82.0

1 Data prior to March 2007 have been mapped to the current PCT structure

2 This is the number of women in the registered population less those recorded as ineligible

Notes:

1. The coverage of the breast screening programme is the proportion of women resident and eligible that have had a test with a recorded result at least once in the previous three years.

2. Coverage of the screening programme is currently best assessed using the 53-64 age group as women may be first called at any time between their 50 and 53 birthdays.

3. The breast screening programme covers women aged 50-64 but it was extended to invite women aged 65-70 in April 2001.

4. The last unit began inviting women aged 65-70 in April 2006 and full coverage should be achieved by 2008-09.

Source:

KC63, the Information Centre for health and social care.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether the national standards for the uptake of (a) breast cancer and (b) cervical cancer screening have been achieved in (i) Tamworth and (ii) the West Midlands. (193629)

Uptake of cervical screening is not measured as women make their own appointments following receipt of a reminder letter. Therefore, to provide consistency all the figures given as follows are for coverage rather than uptake.

The national standard for breast screening coverage is 70 per cent. and the national standard for cervical screening coverage is 80 per cent. The following tables give coverage figures for the West Midlands Strategic Health Authority (SHA) and South Staffordshire Primary Care Trust (PCT), which covers Tamworth, as at 31 March 2007 for breast and cervical screening.

NHS Breast screening programme: coverage of women aged 53-64 for specified organisations, at 31 March 2007

Eligible population1

Women screened (less than 3 years since last test)

Coverage (less than 3 years since last test) (%)

West Midlands SHA

395,515

311,203

78.7

South Staffordshire PCT2

16,885

13,654

80.9

1 This is the number of women in the registered population less those recorded as ineligible.

2 Data prior to March 2007 have been mapped to the current PCT structure.

Notes:

1. The coverage of the breast screening programme is the proportion of women resident and eligible that have had a test with a recorded result at least once in the previous three years.

2. Coverage of the screening programme is currently best assessed using the 53-64 age group as women may be first called at any time between their 50th and 53rd birthdays.

3. The breast screening programme covers women aged 50-64 but it was extended to invite women aged 65-70 in April 2001.

4. The last unit began inviting women aged 65-70 in April 2006 and full coverage should be achieved by 2008-09.

Source:

KC63, the Information Centre for health and social care.

Cervical screening programme: coverage of the Target Age Group (25-64) for specified organisations, at 31 March 2007

Eligible population 1

Coverage (less than 3.5 yrs since last adequate test) (%)

Coverage (less than 5 years since last adequate test) (%)

West Midlands SHA

1,350,787

71.2

79.3

South Staffordshire PCT2

148,521

76.6

82.4

1This is the number of women in the resident population less those with recall ceased for clinical reasons.

2 Data prior to March 2007 have been mapped to the current PCT structure.

Note:

National policy for the cervical screening programme is that eligible women aged 25 to 64 should be screened every three or five years (women aged 25 to 49 are screened every three years, those aged 50 to 64 every five years).

Source:

KC53 Parts A2 and A3, the Information Centre for health and social care.