Denis Naughten (Roscommon-South Leitrim, Fine Gael)
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Question 258: To ask the Minister for Health and Children if she will make BreastCheck available to women over the age of 65; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [19729/07]

James Bannon (Longford-Westmeath, Fine Gael)
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Question 276: To ask the Minister for Health and Children when she plans to make breast checks available for women over 65 years of age; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [19816/07]

Pat Breen (Clare, Fine Gael)
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Question 368: To ask the Minister for Health and Children when mobile breast screening will be made available to the women of County Clare; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [20446/07]

Mary Harney (Dublin Mid West, Progressive Democrats)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 258, 276 and 368 together.

I am committed to ensuring that the BreastCheck service is rolled out to the remaining regions in the country as quickly as possible. I have allocated additional revenue funding of €8 million to the National Cancer Screening Service for this year to meet the additional costs involved. The full complement of 111 staff for roll-out has been approved. BreastCheck appointed the Clinical Directors for the South and West last November and has also appointed four Consultant Radiologists, two Consultant Surgeons and two Consultant Histopathologists, all with a special interest in breast disease. The recruitment of Radiographers and other staff is underway.

I have also made available an additional €26.7m capital funding for the construction of two new clinical units and the provision of seven additional mobile units and state of the art digital equipment. The static units at University College Hospital Galway and the South Infirmary/Victoria Hospital in Cork are due to be completed in late Autumn and BreastCheck has confirmed that the programme will commence national roll-out in October.

The BreastCheck clinical unit in the Western Area at University College Hospital Galway will have three associated mobile units. BreastCheck has already commenced screening in the West, with the provision last May of a mobile unit at Roscommon County Hospital. The expansion of the BreastCheck programme to the Western region will cover counties Clare, Galway, Sligo, Roscommon, Donegal, Mayo, Leitrim, and Tipperary North Riding. There are approximately 58,000 women in the target age group in these counties. Screening in individual counties will be dictated by BreastCheck's management and operational considerations.

The expert advice from BreastCheck and from the National Cancer Forum, as contained in its National Strategy for Cancer Control, is that following the national extension of the current programme, the upper age limit should be extended to women aged 69 years. The priority of BreastCheck is to screen women who have not yet been screened and accordingly it is fully focused at present on the commencement of the first round of screening in the West and South. I will consider extending the age limit as recommended when the national roll-out of the programme is sufficiently developed and it is assured that a quality service is being delivered. Any woman irrespective of her age who has immediate concerns or symptoms should contact her GP who, where appropriate, will refer her to the symptomatic services in her area.