Jade Goody raised the awareness about the importance of cervical screening in the early detection of cervical cancer. Unfortunately the positive effects of her plight have petered off and less women have come forward for screening this year.
In 2008/9 the NHS Cervical Screening Programme saw record numbers of women coming forward to be tested. It was thought that this was as a direct result of the Big Brothers public struggle with cervical cancer. 3.6 million women were tested that year.
In the last year the figures have dropped to 3.3 million for women aged 25 – 64 but in the 25 to 49 age group the figures fell from three million to just 2.6 million in 2009-10.
Screening is very effective in detecting early cell changes that can be a precursor to cancer in the cervix. NHS Information Centre chief executive Tim Straughan said:
‘Screening is vital to catch changes to the cervix which may develop into cervical cancer. This report is important in helping NHS professionals and the public understand what percentage of eligible women is being screened.
‘The 2008-09 peak in numbers attending screening, which may be due in part to publicity surrounding the late Jade Goody’s battle with cervical cancer, appears not to have been sustained this year.’
Its not just the NHS that encourage women to come forward for cervical screening, private health insurance companies are also keen to see women come forward. Some medical insurance companies offer discounts to health insurance premiums when people undertake health screening. PruHealth, for example, offer discounts when you have health screens. This enables people to take an active part in their own wellbeing, pre-empt possible problems early and reduce their monthly premiums in the process.
Additionally Pruhealth have negotiated discounts with screening providers so that there is more incentive for their members access the services that they need. For example, Classic Female Screen from BUPA Wellness normally retails at £440, but its possible for a PruHealth member to get it for £250 or less (Platinum members only pay £25).
Despite the efforts of the NHS in getting women to come forward for free screening more needs to be done. Dr Claire Knight, Cancer Research UK’s health information officer, said:
‘Our main concern is these figures show that consistently one in five women are still not going for screening.
‘Cervical cancer is one of the few cancers that can be prevented through screening, by picking up early changes in the cells that can lead to the disease. Even though we now have the HPV vaccine it’s still important women go for cervical screening when they’re invited.’