Smear tests to be made free

Saturday 07 April 2018

Smear tests are to be made free in Jersey by the end of the year so that no one is discouraged by their ability to pay, in a vital step towards better preventing a disease that kills one to two islanders each year.

Le Bas centre will abolish its £16 fee for cervical screening by 1 June, while Health officials are now working towards securing free smear tests at GP surgeries.

Health Minister Senator Green said that the new measures would ensure that no one is “put off being screened by their ability to pay.”

Video: The facts about HPV, the virus behind cervical cancer. (Jo's Trust)

"I welcome the fact that this initiative means that cervical screening will now be free of charge to the individual, just like the other two cancer screening programmes in Jersey – breast cancer screening for women and bowel cancer screening for men and women,” he commented.

The service will be offered to those aged 25 to 49 every three years, and aged 50 to 64 every five years.

In line with UK National Screening Committee recommendations, the programme will not be offered to islanders below 25, as screening may detect changes in the cervix, which usually return to normal in young people. According to a Cancer Research study, this can lead to unnecessary treatment with harmful side effects.

We will soon be providing free cervical cancer screening. Officials will negotiate a contract with GPs to provide free smear tests, so screening will be available to women free of charge either at their GP practice or at Le Bas Centre #Health #healthcare https://t.co/lTJygUkGPW

— Senator Andrew Green (@andrewgreenjsy) April 6, 2018

Regular testing can prevent up to 75% of cervical cancers developing. Jersey’s take-up rates currently sit at 74% - similar to the UK – but this new initiative could see levels improve.

It follows increased awareness-raising efforts by the Health Department, who saw 20 new cases of cervical cancer in the five years between 2010 and 2014.

“Our aim is to raise the number [of people being tested] through improvements to IT systems which will make sure that all women in the relevant age range are reminded of the need to make an appointment,” a spokesperson told Express during Cervical Cancer Prevention Week in January.

 Pictured: The location of cervical cancer and an example of normal and abnormal cells. (Wiki/Blausen)

They added that the department is continuing to watch developments in cervical screening, adding that self-testing could be a possibility "in the not too distant future."

Speaking about this latest development, Dr Nigel Minihane, Chair of the Primary Care Body, said: "I welcome this approach, which should mean that more women present for cervical screening. In the future, advances in technology and self-testing should make earlier detection easier, and until we are at that point these moves are a positive step."