Cancer Screening

Part of the debate – in Westminster Hall at 12:38 pm on 17 July 2007.

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Photo of Ann Keen Ann Keen Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Health Services), Department of Health 12:38, 17 July 2007

I congratulate Dr. Cable on securing the debate. As he recognised, we have neighbouring constituencies and share the same acute trust—the West Middlesex University Hospital NHS Trust. He also mentioned the personal side of the debate, and I acknowledge that.

The earlier detection of cancer is vital to long-term efforts to reduce cancer mortality. Where screening for cancer is possible, it is an essential tool in detecting abnormalities at an early stage. That is why the NHS cancer plan proposed a major expansion of our cancer screening programmes, where it is clear that that can reduce mortality. The efforts of the service to deliver that expansion are now coming to fruition.

The hon. Gentleman mentioned breast cancer screening, and the NHS breast screening programme was the first such programme in the EU. It is regarded as one of the best screening programmes in the world and is estimated to save l,400 lives a year. I wish that our media would portray such things, rather than the negative issues that are usually associated with cancer and cancer screening.

In March 2005 we completed two of the objectives set by the NHS cancer plan. The screening age was extended to include women aged 65 to 70, and the service was fully upgraded so that two X-ray views of each breast are taken at all screening rounds. As a result of those changes, the breast screening programme screened more women and detected more cancers than ever before in 2005-06; 1.63 million women were screened and more than 13,500 cancers were detected, which implies a 62 per cent. increase since 2001; 40 per cent. of the cancers detected were small cancers that could not have been detected by a hand examination.

We cannot, however, be complacent, and we are always looking at ways of improving the service, as long as there is a clear evidence base. For example, the evidence to support inviting women aged over 70, on a population basis, is not clear. That is why research has been commissioned on behalf of the advisory committee on breast cancer screening. Women over 70 can still self-refer for breast screening every three years, and we have collaborated with Age Concern on a leaflet to remind women of that. I am sure that all hon. Members will welcome that, and actively encourage Age Concern's involvement. In the areas that the hon. Gentleman and I represent it is important to look for ways to approach education in such matters for the ethnic minority communities.

The hon. Gentleman raised the matter of cervical cancer, which is the subject of the NHS's other longest running screening programme; again, it was the first such programme in the EU. The introduction of cervical screening has prevented an epidemic of cervical cancer and is estimated to be preventing up to 5,000 deaths a year. In 2005-06, 79.5 per cent. of eligible women in England had had a test result in the previous five years, 3.6 million women were screened and laboratories reported 4 million tests. However, again, we are not complacent. Following the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence technological appraisal in 2003, we are rolling out the use of liquid-based cytology across the service. That will reduce the number of inadequate tests and speed up the reading of slides. It will mean that 300,000 women a year will not have go through the anxiety of being called back and retested because their slides could not be read.

For women under 25 screening is not a good idea and can do more harm than good, because the cervix is not properly developed. More research on that is taking place. The 2005 Labour party general election manifesto contained a commitment to speeding up cervical screening results. The LBC is a key aspect of that, and the commitment is being taken forward through the cancer reform strategy, which will be published at the end of the year. A more recent development in our battle against cervical cancer has been the advent of human papilloma virus vaccines. HPV is implicated in nearly all cervical cancers. The Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation has recommended that an HPV vaccine should be routinely offered to girls aged around 12 years.

The hon. Gentleman raised a very new area of screening—that for bowel cancer. The NHS bowel cancer screening programme began in April 2006, and full national roll-out is expected by December 2009. It is one of the first national bowel screening programmes in the world, and it is the first cancer screening programme in England to invite men as well as women. Once it is fully operational, each year, around 3 million men and women in their 60s will be sent a self-sampling kit to use in the privacy of their homes. It is an ambitious project and, when fully implemented, will detect around 3,000 bowel cancers every year. I am pleased to say that those of the hon. Gentleman's constituents who are in their 60s began to be invited to participate in the programme on 8 January.

We are committed to introducing a screening programme for prostate cancer if and when screening and treatment techniques become sufficiently well developed. I note the point that the hon. Gentleman made about what he was offered in the House. The Department of Health is supporting the development of screening technology for prostate cancer by way of a comprehensive research strategy. Prostate cancer is the only cancer with a departmental research funding target, and we continue to fund at least £4.2 million of prostate cancer research each year.

The hon. Gentleman and I both attended an Ovarian Cancer Action charity reception yesterday. The NHS cancer plan committed the Government to introducing ovarian cancer screening as and when research demonstrates that screening is appropriate and cost-effective. The research is well under way, and the UK collaborative trial of ovarian cancer screening began in 2000; results are expected in 2012. The cancer used to be called the silent killer, but we now have evidence to suggest that we can do more. I welcome the research, having taken an active interest in ovarian cancer for some time.

We need, of course, to screen for and monitor other cancers. However, participation is very important, and the hon. Gentleman raised the important issue of increasing participation in our screening programmes. We agree with him, but we must encourage people to attend for screening in a responsible way. People who are invited to participate in our cancer screening programmes need to understand the potential benefits and harms in doing so and to be able to make an informed choice about whether they want to proceed. That is why all people who are eligible to participate in the programmes receive a national information leaflet when they are invited for screening. Those leaflets have been translated into 19 languages; posters and CDs are also available in seven languages.

Cancer screening will form a major part of the cancer reform strategy. As part of the strategy we will be looking at new ways of encouraging people to make the decision to attend screening; that applies particularly to those from more deprived groups, whose uptake of screening has historically been poor. I hope that the leaflets in different languages and the way we approach education in communities where English is not the first language will help to improve constituents' quality of life.

I pay tribute to all organisations and MPs who keep the issue of breast cancer in the public and Government eye. I hope that the hon. Gentleman will join me in thanking all the staff who have worked so hard in making our cancer screening programmes some of the best in the world, and particularly those in screening programmes in the areas that we represent. I congratulate the hon. Gentleman on bringing the debate to the House.