BowelScreen, [1] BreastCheck [2] and CervicalCheck [3] are cancer screening programmes organised by the Health Service Executive (HSE) in the Republic of Ireland.
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BowelScreen is the national bowel cancer screening programme. [1] It was launched in November 2012 by Minister for Health James Reilly, with the eventual aim of offering bi-annual scans to people ages 55 to 74. [4] It is offered every two years to residents of Ireland age 59 to 69. [5] The screening consists of an at-home stool test and, if a certain level of blood is found, a referral for a colonoscopy. [6]
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BreastCheck is the national breast cancer screening programme. [2] It was initially founded under Micheál Martin's tenure as Minister for Health and Children in October 2000 as a pilot in a limited number of health boards. [7] [8] [9] Over 70% of the women invited to take part in the screening in the first year, accepted. [7]
During the height of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, breast cancer and cervical cancer screenings were temporarily suspended and the number of breast cancer-related procedures and diagnoses were greatly reduced. [10] This has led to concerns over the lasting effects of the pandemic, including healthcare capacity issues and delayed diagnoses. [11]
As of 2024 [update] , free breast cancer screening is offered every two years to all women aged 50 to 67. [12] Due to the pandemic, invitations for breast screening may be sent every three years instead of every two years. [13]
CervicalCheck is the national cervical screening programme. [14] It was launched in September 2008 as the public name of the National Cancer Screening Service. [15] In May 2008, then chief executive officer Tony O'Brien dismissed claims that misdiagnoses would result from the use of US-based lab Quest Diagnostics. [15]
In 2014, a woman presented with a confirmed diagnosis of cervical cancer after a CervicalCheck test showed no abnormalities. On 26 April 2018, the HSE confirmed that 206 women developed cervical cancer after having a screening test which was subsequently deemed to be potentially inaccurate, given the known limitations of screening using smear technology. [14] In May, HSE director-general Tony O'Brien took temporary leave of absence from the board of a US medical company amid renewed calls for him to stand aside from his position due to the ongoing controversy. [16] Tony O'Brien announced his resignation as director-general of the HSE with effect from close of business on 11 May. [17]
The Papanicolaou test is a method of cervical screening used to detect potentially precancerous and cancerous processes in the cervix or, more rarely, anus. Abnormal findings are often followed up by more sensitive diagnostic procedures and, if warranted, interventions that aim to prevent progression to cervical cancer. The test was independently invented in the 1920s by the Greek physician Georgios Papanikolaou and named after him. A simplified version of the test was introduced by the Canadian obstetrician Anna Marion Hilliard in 1957.
Cervical cancer is a cancer arising from the cervix or in any layer of the wall of the cervix. It is due to the abnormal growth of cells that have the ability to invade or spread to other parts of the body. Early on, typically no symptoms are seen. Later symptoms may include abnormal vaginal bleeding, pelvic pain or pain during sexual intercourse. While bleeding after sex may not be serious, it may also indicate the presence of cervical cancer.
Screening, in medicine, is a strategy used to look for as-yet-unrecognised conditions or risk markers. This testing can be applied to individuals or to a whole population without symptoms or signs of the disease being screened.
The Health Service Executive (HSE) is the publicly funded healthcare system in Ireland, responsible for the provision of health and personal social services. It came into operation on 1 January 2005.
Breast cancer screening is the medical screening of asymptomatic, apparently healthy women for breast cancer in an attempt to achieve an earlier diagnosis. The assumption is that early detection will improve outcomes. A number of screening tests have been employed, including clinical and self breast exams, mammography, genetic screening, ultrasound, and magnetic resonance imaging.
The objective of cancer screening is to detect cancer before symptoms appear, involving various methods such as blood tests, urine tests, DNA tests, and medical imaging. The purpose of screening is early cancer detection, to make the cancer easier to treat and extending life expectancy. In 2019, cancer was the second leading cause of death globally; more recent data is pending due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Simon Harris is an Irish Fine Gael politician serving as Taoiseach and leader of Fine Gael since 2024. A TD for the Wicklow constituency since 2011, he served as a minister of state from 2014 to 2016 and as a minister since 2016.
Cervical cancer screening is a medical screening test designed to identify risk of cervical cancer. Cervical screening may involve looking for viral DNA, and/or to identify abnormal, potentially precancerous cells within the cervix as well as cells that have progressed to early stages of cervical cancer. One goal of cervical screening is to allow for intervention and treatment so abnormal lesions can be removed prior to progression to cancer. An additional goal is to decrease mortality from cervical cancer by identifying cancerous lesions in their early stages and providing treatment prior to progression to more invasive disease.
A well-woman examination is an exam offered to women to review elements of their reproductive health. The exam includes a breast examination, a pelvic examination and a Pap smear but may include other procedures. Hospitals employ strict policies relating to the provision of consent by the patient, the availability of chaperones at the examination, and the absence of other parties.
Events during the year 2018 in Ireland.
The CervicalCheck cancer scandal first emerged in 2018 and involved several women in the Republic of Ireland suing the Health Service Executive (HSE) after they received incorrect smear test results for cervical cancer.
Victoria Phelan, was an Irish healthcare campaigner, best known for her campaigning in the CervicalCheck cancer scandal.
Kevin Cross is a retired Irish judge who served as a Judge of the High Court from 2011 to 2021.
William Gerard Anthony Holohan is an Irish public health physician who served as Chief Medical Officer of Ireland from May 2008 to 1 July 2022. Fergal Bowers described him as being "as familiar as Dr Anthony Fauci in the US and arguably as influential".
Paul Reid is an Irish former public servant, who served as Director-General of the Health Service Executive, the national health service coordinating body, from April 2019 to October 2022. He previously was chief executive of Fingal County Council from 2014 to 2019, and before that worked in Ireland's Department of Public Expenditure and Reform and an international development charity, after a 25-year career with telecom service provider Eircom and its predecessors.
The COVID-19 pandemic in the Republic of Ireland has had far-reaching consequences in the country that go beyond the spread of the disease itself and efforts to quarantine it, including political, educational and sporting implications.
Gabriel John Scally FFPHM is an Irish public health physician and a former regional director of public health (RDPH) for the south west of England. He is a visiting professor of public health at the University of Bristol and is a member of the Independent SAGE group, formed during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020. He has also been chair of the trustees of the Soil Association. Previously he was professor of public health and planning, and director of the World Health Organization (WHO) Collaborating Centre for Healthy Urban Environments, both at the University of the West of England (UWE). He was president of the Section of Epidemiology and Public Health of the Royal Society of Medicine, a position he took in 2017.
Events during the year 2021 in Ireland. As in most of the world, the COVID-19 pandemic has dominated events in Ireland during this year.
The following is a timeline of the COVID-19 pandemic in the Republic of Ireland in 2021.
The following is a timeline of the COVID-19 pandemic in the Republic of Ireland in 2022.
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