Written question asked by Elliot Colburn (Conservative) on Monday, 11 March 2024, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Wednesday, 13 March 2024. It was answered by Andrew Stephenson (Conservative) on Tuesday, 19 March 2024 on behalf of the Department of Health and Social Care.

Breast Cancer: Screening

Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of (a) lowering the breast cancer screening age to 40 and (b) including a breast cancer risk assessment in the first appointment.

Answer: The UK National Screening Committee (UK NSC) currently recommends that all women aged 50 years old to 71 years old are invited for breast screening every three years. A trial, AgeX is looking at the impact of increasing or decreasing, or both, the screening age for the breast screening programme. When the results from this trial are available, the UK NSC will review the findings. The UK NSC plans to review the evidence for risk stratification in breast screening to tailor it more closely to an individual’s risk of cancer, rather than the current population-based approach.

Secondary information