Last reviewed: 27 March 2024
Last reviewed: 27 March 2024
Cervical screening is available to anyone with a cervix between the ages of 25 to 64 in the UK. The cervical screening test facilitates the identification of changes in the cervix which, if left untreated, could develop into cancer.
Cervical screening saves at least 2,000 lives each year in the UK
and we can expect to see some further impact on lives saved where human papillomavirus (HPV) primary testing has been implemented.There are a few key questions or misunderstandings that can arise around who is eligible to take part in cervical screening and to help with this we have updated our section on eligibility in the Cervical Good Practice Guide to help health professionals provide the right information to patients.
Download our cervical good practice guide(PDF, 724 KB)
Read about primary human papillomavirus (HPV) testing and cervical screening coverage.
The latest evidence on barriers and resources to support informed choices.
Includes information on safety netting, extending screening intervals and self-sampling.
Find out what cervical screening is, who’s eligible and how to get tested.
Read our public cervical screening informationLandy, R., Pesola, F., Castañón, A. et al. Impact of cervical screening on cervical cancer mortality: estimation using stage-specific results from a nested case–control study. Br J Cancer 115, 1140–1146 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1038/bjc.2016.290
Castanon A, Landy R, Sasieni P. By how much could screening by primary human papillomavirus testing reduce cervical cancer incidence in England?. J Med Screen. 2017;24(2):110-112. https://doi.org/10.1177/0969141316654197
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