WHY SCREEN FOR CERVICAL CANCER
Cervical cancer is the 14th most common cancer in Scottish women accounting for 2.1% of female cancer cases.
Cervical screening saves around 5000 lives every year and prevents 8 out of 10 cervical cancers from developing.
CERVICAL SCREENING PROGRAMME
Cervical screening to detect and treat abnormal changes in a woman's cervix (the neck of the womb) which, if left untreated, may develop into invasive cervical cancer.
The Scottish Cervical Screening Programme has been in place since 1989. All eligible women in Scotland between the ages of 25 and 64 are invited for cervical screening every five years. Ladies may be recalled more often depending on test results. Those on non routine screening (where screening results have shown changes that need further investigation or follow up) will be invited up to 70 years of age.
These tests are processed in laboratories throughout Scotland and results are issued to the women's GP. Women with non negative results are referred for further investigation and treatment where necessary.