Finian McGrath (Dublin Bay North, Independent) | Oireachtas source

I thank Deputy Kelly for raising this important issue which is one he is doing a lot of work on. This also provides me with the opportunity to update the House on this very important and urgent matter. The Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists has been asked by the Government to undertake an independent expert panel review of the screening results of women who have developed cervical cancer and who had participated in the screening programme. This will provide independent clinical assurance to women about the timing of their diagnosis and issues relating to their treatment and outcome. Upon completion, each participant will be provided with an individual report, and an aggregated report will be submitted to the Minister for Health. It is the Minister’s intention to publish this report, following Government approval. Over the past number of months, a significant body of work has been undertaken by the Department of Health and by the HSE in progressing the expert panel review.

This has included seeking the consent of women or their next of kin, where the woman has, sadly, died, for participation in the review. This ensures that only those who wished to be involved would have their screening history examined. The HSE also set up a dedicated information line, staffed by administrative and clinical staff to support those invited to participate in the review.

The HSE has noted that the validation of data held in relation to all the women eligible for the review has been a very complex process involving engagement between the National Screening service, the HSE acute hospital division and the National Cancer Registry Ireland. Over 1,700 women or their next-of-kin have been written to, and approximately 1,100 have given their consent to be included. This is a high participation rate of 62%, which indicates a very good level of engagement with the review. The high participation rate will ensure that the expert panel can provide the necessary robust analysis in their aggregate report for the Minister. The HSE has informed the Department of Health that it is expected the process of transferring the slides from the CervicalCheck laboratories to the expert panel review will commence later this month, which is the answer to the Deputy's question. The RCOG expert panel has indicated that it will take at least six months from the commencement of the analysis of the slides, for the review to be completed.

It is of paramount importance that the review is conducted in a way that ensures the quality, comprehensiveness and integrity of the results. The Department of Health is committed to continuous support to facilitate RCOG and the HSE in progressing this review as expeditiously as possible, and this the priority for the Minister for Health, Deputy Harris.

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