CervicalCheck highlights common barriers women over 50 face, as part of Cervical Cancer Prevention Week
This week is Cervical Cancer Prevention Week (17 – 23 January). To mark this week the National Screening Service programme (NSS) have launched an awareness campaign encouraging women over 50 to attend cervical screening services. Screening at regular intervals is one of the best ways to reduce the risk of developing cervical cancer.
A new HSE public attitudes survey carried out by Core Research in 2021 has reported on the barriers women of menopausal age face when considering taking up their screening invitation.
These barriers include:
- A fear of the process
- Finding screening more uncomfortable at this age
- Finding screening embarrassing
- Half of all women surveyed said a fear of finding something was wrong would deter them from attending screening
- 1 in 5 women said they were concerned about attending their screening appointment due to COVID-19
Women and people with a cervix aged 25 to 65 are invited to attend free cervical screening every three to five years, depending on their age and previous screening history. New screening data shows that attendance declines as women age – meaning women over 50 are at a slightly higher risk of developing changes that could develop into cancer.
There are ways to make the test more comfortable. CervicalCheck suggest women consult with their GP or practice nurse on ways to make the test more comfortable for them.
Eligible women can book a free HPV cervical screening test with any of the 4,500 GPs or nurses registered with the HSE.