A pause on self-referrals to breast screenings for women over the age of 71 has now been lifted, with the first appointments to take place by the end of October.

All adult screening programmes were temporarily suspended due to covid-19 in March 2020. Services were slowly phased back in later that year to protect capacity by prioritising those most at risk.

Breast screening for patients in the clinically recommended age range of between 50 and 70 was reinstated on the 3^rd of August 2020, but a pause for older women self-referring to screenings has been in place for more than two years.

Announcing the update in a response to a parliamentary written question, the Minister for Public Health, Women’s Health and Sport, Maree Todd, says the first invitations will be sent to eligible older women from the 26^th of September, with appointments commencing a month later:

“At this stage, the eligible groups being prioritised for self-referrals are women aged 71 to 74 (+364 days), and women over 75 with a history of breast cancer who have completed their hospital follow up.

“This phased approach allows self-referrals to restart in a way we hope will not unduly impact on waiting times for women aged 50-70 for whom screening is recommended.”

Self-referral recommenced in England and Northern Ireland in late 2020, and there have been reports of women travelling down south for appointments after their requests for mammograms in Scotland were refused.

Age Scotland and About Dementia told the Scottish parliament’s Covid-19 Recovery Committee last session that this, and the resultant impact on waiting times for treatment courses to start, may have contributed to excess deaths during the pandemic.

Nicola Sturgeon told MSPs earlier this year that she had heard concerns that the early reintroduction of optional screening for women over 71 had impacted services catching up on women for whom screening is clinically recommended.

The impact of the restart on programme capacity and wait times will be “monitored closely” according to Maree Todd, while it continues to look for opportunities to increase the number of appointments.

A major review of Scotland’s breast screening service undertaken earlier this year found serious need for reform, amid falling uptake, especially in the country’s most deprived areas where fewer than three in five attend.

Among the 17 recommendations is the development of a single programme-wide workforce plan, with a focus on training capacity, role development, and redesign in the six NHS boards that host breast screening services.

A direct call-recall system which would notify women based on their next testing date was also proposed in the review to help improve uptake.  

Between 2018/19 and 2020/21, 675,381 women aged 50-70 were invited to a routine breast screening, with more than seven in ten attending – an increase in uptake since the previous three-year period.

Eligible women over 71 can now register for self-referral appointments by contacting their local breast screening service.

 

Read more: Review calls for breast screening overhaul; Update: New portfolio to tackle inequality; New ultrasound training scheme set to reduce wait time

 

 

 

Sign up to our bulletin for key health & social care updates straight to your inbox