Government launch first cervical screening ad campaign in England

Over the next two months, England’s first ever advertising campaign for cervical screening will run across TV, radio and online.

The campaign, run by Public Health England (PHE), comes after figures for women attending cervical screenings in England were the lowest in 20 years.

The target for cervical screenings set by the NHS is for 80% of women aged 25 to 49 to be tested every three years, and 80% of women aged 50 to 64 to be screened every five. However, recent figures from PHE show that in 2017, just over 71% of all women in England aged 25 to 64 had been screened at regular intervals. In some parts of the country less than 50% of women attended regular screenings.

It is estimated that 2,600 women are diagnosed with cervical cancer each year and around 700 will die from the disease.

The charity ‘Jo's Cervical Cancer Trust’ conducted research suggesting that young women are embarrassed to attend because of reasons such as appearance and body shape, while 15% of women admitted they would miss their screening for various other appointments or a gym class. Experts have also stated that lack of awareness and attitudes of ‘it can wait until a later date’, are likely contributors towards the low figures.

Anne Mackie, PHE director of screening, has stressed the new campaign is about "breaking down barriers".

The campaign has steered clear of the term ‘smear test’, which officials claim is ‘outdated’ and could potentially be another factor putting women off. Instead, it aims to ‘normalise’ the procedure through use of the term cervical screening, as well as highlighting how the screening can save lives and is simply a health check for your cervix.

Hannah Bottomley, clinical negligence solicitor at Potter Rees Dolan, said:

It seems to be widely accepted and acknowledged that the earlier a diagnosis of cancer is made, the better the potential outcome for the patient. Here at PRD we sadly come across patients who have been presenting with various symptoms but due to mistakes made by medical professionals there is a delay in diagnosing the cancer resulting in a worse outcome, sometimes even resulting in death.

Knowing that earlier diagnosis can really save lives I am encouraged by this new campaign to ensure women undergo regular cervical screenings and therefore give themselves the best chance of identifying any problems as soon as possible, hopefully preventing some of the 700 cervical cancer deaths each year.

Other elements in the governments approach to increasing uptake include pilot trials for text reminders and a review of invitation and results letters and information leaflets.

Some areas of England have also introduced late night and weekend screenings, and there has been some consideration from government advisers to possibly recommend self-testing going forward.

Read how we secured compensation for our client following a misdiagnosed brain tumor that resulted in the death of a young mother.

Hannah Bottomley is a clinical negligence solicitor here at Potter Rees Dolan. Should you have any queries about clinical negligence issues, including misdiagnosed or delayed diagnosis cancer claims, or indeed any other aspect of this article and wish to speak to Hannah or any other member of the team please contact us on 0161 237 5888 or email Hannah directly.