Home smears on the cards after positive DG pilot

A SCHEME letting women self-screen at home for cervical cancer is to be rolled out nationwide after a successful pilot in Dumfries and Galloway.

Home screening for cervical cancer was first piloted in Scotland by NHS Dumfries and Galloway from 2020 as part of a wider study across the UK into the effectiveness of self-screening at home.

Women are sent a kit to take samples where they may be more comfortable in their own home. The self-sample is then sent back to the NHS for laboratory analysis.

Where issues are found, women are contacted directly with advice on next steps through the health service, including further diagnosis and potential treatments.

Prior to the local pilot going live, around 6000 woman every year were either unable to attend in-person screening or choose not to attend for a variety of reasons.

It’s hoped the full Scottish roll-out of the initiative will particularly benefit women living in rural areas, who will now be able to avoid the sometimes longer journeys to healthcare facilities for the regular smear test.

South Scotland MSP Emma Harper, who is a registered nurse, is delighted to hear of the success.

She has championed the project since it first commenced locally and said: “For many years now I’ve been supporting the research and the work that is being done by the NHS D&G health care professionals to have self-sampling rolled out as widely as possible. It is great to see this progress.

“I’m even more happy now that Scotland’s Public Health Minister has confirmed the screening at home programme will now be extended across the country, after Dumfries and Galloway’s success in leading the way.

“The confirmation by the UK National Screening Committee that a full expansion of self-sampling to the rest of Scotland is evidence that the pilots in Dumfries and Galloway and elsewhere have shown the value of the programme, particularly in cases where women fail to take up their offered in-person screening appointment.”

Ms Harper also noted that in common with most European countries, the roll out of the HPV vaccine across younger women in the last 17 years has led to a dramatic reduction in cases of cervical cancer among that cohort.

She added: “Incredibly, no cervical cancer cases have been detected in vaccinated women following HPV immunisation.

“But it’s still hugely important that women are screened regularly – whether they received the vaccine or not – and extending to include a self-screening option means increased screening opportunities.

“Whether it’s in person or at home, every woman who’s offered screening should take it up to give the protection to their own health and increase the chances of early detection and treatment for cervical cancer – which is ultimately what saves lives.”