ABSTRACT
Population-based screening is a well-established approach to secondary prevention. In the UK, the National Screening Committee (NSC) advises ministers and the National Health Service (NHS) in all four countries on the case for implementing new population-based screening programmes. Most high-income countries have national screening programmes for Cardiovascular disease (CVD), various cancers, as well as a range of genetic factors. National screening programmes for breast, cervical and bowel cancer, however, aim to increase early detection and improve survival. In the case of cervical cancer, five-yearly screening has been estimated to prevent 63-73 per cent of cancers in women over 50 years. In relation to screening for breast cancer, socio-economic status is an important factor in explaining uptake, as well as ethnic group, with white women from higher socioeconomic groups being more likely to attend. The development of an effective screening test for the early detection of lung cancer is also underway.
