James Reilly (Dublin North, Fine Gael)
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Question 216: To ask the Minister for Health and Children if she will provide details on the national breast screening programme; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [2123/11]

James Reilly (Dublin North, Fine Gael)
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Question 217: To ask the Minister for Health and Children her plans to expand the age range relating to the national breast screening programme; the timeframe and details for same; the estimated cost to expand this service to 70 year olds; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [2124/11]

James Reilly (Dublin North, Fine Gael)
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Question 218: To ask the Minister for Health and Children her plans to expand the age range relating to the national breast screening programme; if so, the timeframe and details for same; the estimated cost to expand this service to 47 year olds; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [2125/11]

Mary Harney (Dublin Mid West, Independent)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 216 to 218, inclusive, together.

The BreastCheck Programme was rolled out nationally at the end of 2009. The Programme provides free mammograms to all women aged 50 – 64. The Breastcheck Programme Report 2009-2010 noted that 121,160 women were screened by BreastCheck during 2009 and early 2010 and 845 women were diagnosed with breast cancer, representing 7.0 cancers per 1,000 women screened, compared to 7.3 cancers per 1,000 in 2008. Breastcheck will be extended to women in the 65-69 age group as soon as resources and capacity allow. In the meantime women of any age who have concerns about breast cancer should seek the advice of their GP who will, if appropriate, refer them to the symptomatic breast services in one of the eight designated specialist cancer centres.

The HSE's National Cancer Screening Service (NCSS) has estimated that there are approximately 85,000 women in the age group 65-69 and that the additional cost of expanding the programme over a number of years would be around €5 million, with a capital investment of approximately €3 million. However its main priority at present is to maximise national uptake in the 50 - 64 year age cohort. The other priority for the NCSS is to ensure that preparatory work for the national colorectal screening programme takes place this year in order for screening to commence in early 2012 for men and women in the 60 to 69 age group.

The NCSS has advised that while it is well accepted that age is a risk factor for breast cancer (the older a woman is the more likely she is to get breast cancer) a woman's relative risk of dying from breast cancer after the age of 65 actually decreases. The effectiveness of screening below age 50 remains an issue of debate. Several randomised controlled trials in screening have included younger age groups but have not confirmed significant reduction in mortality in the 40-49 age group.

In 2008 the Board of the NCSS commissioned an internal review to examine the evidence for reducing the lower screening age limit from 50 to 47 years. The review concluded that while a reduction in screening age might be of some benefit to some younger women, the merits of extending the programme age range downwards from a population-based screening perspective is still a matter of debate.