A majority in the House of Representatives supports the D66 proposal to make self-sampling tests available for cervical cancer. Initiator Wieke Paulusma hopes this will allow more women to test whether they are at risk for cervical cancer.
The cervical cancer screening program can be used to detect (a preliminary stage of) cervical cancer.
But the number of study participants has been declining since 2018. Last year, 55 percent of women between the ages of 30 and 60 took part in this survey. That percentage is very low, Paulusma says. Early diagnosis of cervical cancer allows better treatment of the disease.
Participation may be limited as young women are less concerned about the possibility of getting sick. Women may also find the stain painful in the doctor’s office, Paulusma suspects.
The MP hopes to lower the threshold through a self-sampling test (“home test”). This test can detect the human papilloma virus (HPV, which causes cervical cancer) and any abnormal cells. It takes 3 million euros a year for home trials.
D66 wants the home test sent home as standard
D66 wants all women who receive an invitation to participate in population screening for the first time in 2023 to receive a home test as standard. This is now done on request only.
“We can and must be far ahead of cervical cancer than we do now,” says Paulusma. “This not only saves a lot of diseases, but also a lot of pain.”
The Health Council had previously given a positive opinion on the proposal presented by Paulusma during the discussion of the budget of the Ministry of Health, Welfare and Sport (VWS).
About 950 women in the Netherlands get cervical cancer every year. Most of them are between the ages of 30 and 55. Women diagnosed with early cervical cancer have a 96% survival rate.
