John Curran (Dublin Mid West, Fianna Fail)
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Question 253: To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Health and Children if she will review the operation of BreastCheck; and if, in particular, she will consider offering the service to women outside the target group aged 50 to 64 years. [9352/06]

Mary Harney (Dublin Mid West, Progressive Democrats)
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BreastCheck, the national breast screening programme, is available to women in the 50 to 64 age group in the eastern, north-eastern, south-eastern and midlands regions. There are approximately 160,000 women in the target age group in these regions and since the programme commenced, more than 1,600 cancers have been detected.

Planning is under way for the roll-out of the programme to the remaining regions. There are approximately 130,000 women in the target population for screening in the southern and western regions. BreastCheck is confident that the target date of next year for the commencement of the roll-out will be met. On full roll-out, women in the 50 to 64 age group in every county will have access to breast screening and follow-up treatment, where appropriate.

When the national roll-out of the programme is sufficiently developed and it is assured that a quality service is being delivered at national level, consideration will be given to including older women and thereby continuing the screening of women in the programme who have reached 65 years of age. There is no evidence of the value of population-based breast screening programmes for women under 50 years of age and there are no plans to extend the programme to this age group.