Women and people with a cervix across England who haven’t come forward for vital health checks will be offered home-testing kits as part of the cervical screening programme under the upcoming 10 Year Health Plan, the government has announced.
The news comes following completion of a study sponsored by UCL. The YouScreen trial provided self-sampling kits to women and people with a cervix who were at least six months overdue for their cervical screening. The trial was carried out in 2021 and involved 133 GP practices.
Researchers found offering self-sampling kits to under-screened women when they attend their GP practice and by posting kits to women’s homes could boost the numbers screened in England by about 400,000 each year – and over a million over three years.
The study benefitted from the regulatory and trials expertise of the UCLH/UCL Joint Research Office, which supported defining the regulatory pathway and supporting KCL in the set up and delivery of the study.
The initiative for home testing announced today is an example of embedding and enhancing evidence-based preventative care in the community which clearly aligns closely with the shifts in the upcoming NHS 10-year plan.
Under the new initiative, women who have rarely or have never attended their cervical screening will be offered a self-sample kit to complete at home. They are then sent out in discreet packaging and returned via pre-paid mail in the local post box.
Participation in cervical cancer screening nationally currently sits at just 68.8% - well below the NHS England target of 80%. This means over 5 million women in England are not up to date with their routine check-up. But experts believe this targeted approach could increase participation in the screening programme that saves approximately 5000 lives a year across England.
The initiative is part of the government’s upcoming 10 Year Health Plan – due to be published in the coming weeks – which sets out how government plans to tackle the challenges facing the health service and build an NHS that is fit for the future by doing more to prevent ill health.
The YouScreen study was coordinated by King’s College London in partnership with NHS Cancer Alliances in North Central and North East London, NHS England and the NHS Cervical Screening Programme. The work was funded by the Cancer Alliances for north central and east London, with additional supportive funding from Cancer Research UK.
The trial results were published last year in eClinicalMedicine.
Reflecting on the study, JRO Clinical Trials Operations Manager Farhat Gilani said: "Academic research is rarely straightforward - but when it leads to real-world impact, the rewards are worth every challenge.
"Research & Development offices often navigate a complex landscape when it comes to sponsorship. Taking on legal responsibility for a study means ensuring it is ethically sound, well-managed, and compliant with regulations within very tight budgets.
"That’s why it's particularly meaningful to reflect on the success of the YouScreen study. UCL supported King’s College London as sponsor for this important trial. It was a challenging process, involving close collaboration with regulators, KCL, and multiple stakeholders - but it paid off. The outcomes of the study have now contributed to a change in the clinical care pathway.
"This is why I do what I do and I absolutely love it."
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