Following the Cervical Screening Wales statement on extending the normal screening gap from three to five years if human papilloma virus is not detected in a smear test, what discussions has the government had with Public Health Wales to support this decision?
Like the rest of the UK, the Welsh Government follows the independent, expert advice of The UK National Screening Committee (UK NSC). The UKNSC has made a recommendation for all UK nations to implement the new cervical screening test and change the screening interval from three to five years for those who are HPV negative. This recommendation was made after years of research and UK wide public consultation. In July 2020 the Welsh Government’s Wales Screening Committee approved Public Health Wales’s recommendation to progress planning the implementation of the extension of the routine screening interval to five years for women with a negative HPV routine screening result and regular progress updates have been provided to subsequent meetings of the committee.