Health Screening Programmes
Dail Éireann — 2026-09-23
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Mary Butler (FF), Waterford

The Deputy certainly does not look old enough. I am going to draw on my own lived experience in relation to this because is really important. If we only take one thing away from today it is that we urge every eligible woman to attend for breast screening when they are called as the numbers are only at 70%. The last time I attended was two years ago in the summer. I remember arriving at about 11.05 a.m., five minutes late, and I apologised to the nurse on duty who told me not to worry as I was the first person to arrive that day. She said that when the sun was shining unfortunately the screening was not a priority for people. It is really important that it is noted on the floor of the Dáil that people turn up for only two out of every three appointments. The question is what we do to improve that and to look for solutions.
Enhancing Ireland's cancer screening programme is a priority for the Minister for Health and for all of us in the House. These programmes are a vital component of our health services. Breast cancer is the most common non-invasive cancer in women, with over 3,500 cases diagnosed in Ireland every year. About one third of these are detected through screening. BreastCheck, Ireland's national breast screening programme, screens women aged 50 to 69 years of age. It aims to detect breast cancer at the earliest possible stage and provide assessment and access to onward care for women who need further interventions. It operates four regional screening units and 24 mobile units serving 54 locations across the country. In 2025, BreastCheck screened 173,443 women, the highest number in its history. However, the HSE acknowledged that this was below the target it set itself for that year.
The Government has made significant investments in cancer screening programmes in recent years. This includes improvements to infrastructure, staffing and technology, and the Minister for Health understands from the national screening service that these improvements include a new patient database system. This is a modern system that simplifies and streamlines workflows for BreastCheck's team. It enables real-time data tracking of screening a participant's journey and helps address the service gaps. The HSE has also implemented a streamlined appointment system and reorganised radiography staff to increase weekday appointments using its current resources. Since 2023, the NSS has recruited new consultants and senior radiographers, secured additional recruitment funding and expanded training places. BreastCheck has partnered with University College Cork to launch a postgraduate mammography certification in Ireland. This is really important because it enables mammographers to train in Ireland. Three new mobile screening units have been added since 2020, bringing the total number to 24. BreastCheck continues to commission new mobile screening units and plan for additional screening infrastructure. BreastCheck has been engaged on inviting women at higher risk, those waiting longest, newly eligible women, and women from marginalised groups who may face barriers to screening. We really want to encourage all women to attend their appointments or to reschedule them. Filling every slot helps to ensure that more women receive screenings.

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Record URI: https://data.oireachtas.ie/akn/ie/debateRecord/dail/2026-09-23/debate/main
Retrieved: 2026-09-28T05:50:49+00:00
Sitting date: 2026-09-23