Stephen Donnelly (Wicklow, Fianna Fail)
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I am fully committed to supporting our population screening programmes which are a valuable part of our health service, enabling early treatment and care for many people, and improving the overall health of our population.

Under commitments in the Programme for Government, BreastCheck eligibility has been expanded to women aged 69 years since 2021. The Programme for Government also commits to expanding the age range for BowelScreen to those aged 55 to 74, and the HSE plans to commence this in 2023 with expansion to those aged 59, in addition to the current age range of 60 to 69.

Any decisions about further changes in cancer screening, including further extension of the age ranges, will be made on the advice of the National Screening Advisory Committee (NSAC). This independent expert group considers and assesses evidence in a robust and transparent manner, and against internationally accepted criteria. It is important we have rigorous processes in place to ensure our screening programmes are effective, quality assured and operating to safe standards, and that the benefits of screening outweigh the harms.

I am pleased to report that the Committee is already progressing work on the further expansion of our cancer screening programmes, and has asked HIQA to evaluate the evidence for the further expansion of the age range eligibility for both the BowelScreen and BreastCheck programme.

Under Europe’s Beating Cancer Plan, an updated European Council Recommendation on cancer screening was published in December 2022. The updated Recommendation recommends extended screening for colorectal (bowel) cancer and breast cancer, along with other recommendations in relation to cervical, lung, prostate and gastric cancer screening. The NSAC will consider this Recommendation and advise me and the Department of Health on the evidence as it applies to Ireland.

Ireland will also be actively engaged with the significant ongoing collaborative work at European level to take forward the updated Recommendation on cancer screening.