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Written question asked by Jim Shannon (Democratic Unionist Party) on Monday, 27 October 2025, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Wednesday, 29 October 2025. It was answered by Ashley Dalton (Labour) on Wednesday, 12 November 2025 on behalf of the Department of Health and Social Care.

Cervical Cancer: Screening

Question

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment his Department has made of the potential merits of lowering the age at which women are offered their first smear test.

Answer

The cervical screening age in the United Kingdom was officially changed from 20 to 25 years old in 2003. This decision was made by the Advisory Committee on Cervical Cancer Screening which advised the NHS Cervical Screening Programme to raise the starting age due to evidence that screening younger women could do more harm than good. This is because: cervical abnormalities are common in women under 25 years old, but they usually resolve naturally; screening could lead to unnecessary treatments, which carry risks such as increased chances of pre-term delivery; and cervical cancer is extremely rare in women under 25 years old.

Since then, the human papillomavirus vaccination programme has been introduced, which means the vast majority of women under 29 years old have been offered the vaccine that protects against most forms of cervical cancer.

Secondary information

Type
Written question
Reference
85148
Session
2024-26
Subjects
Cervical cancer Age Screening
Link
View this Written question on www.parliament.uk