annual pap smear and mammogram

Hi everyone

Do you get a free Pap smear and mammogram annually with NHS?

As you know, it's free with any insurance we have in U.S.

When I looked up, they say it's every 3 yrs for women of my age

They don't seem to offer free mammogram every year like United States.

Smear tests are offered free every 3 years from the age of 25 to 49 and every 5 years from 50 to 64. However, if you have abnormal results or a history, they will do them more often.

Mammograms are only offered every 3 years from the age of 50-70, though it sounds like they are trialling them from age 47 to 73. But, again, if there is family history, they should do them earlier.

See:
https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/cervical-screening/when-its-offered/
https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/breast-cancer-screening/when-its-offered/

My wife has annual mammograms with the NHS (just had her 3rd since we returned in 2016) because her sister, mother and aunt all had to have lumpectomies.

My sister, in her late 30's, had cervical cancer detected on a 3 year routine pap smear.  Needed a couple of procedures to clear it. She then had 3 monthly, then 6 monthly tests for 5 years until she was given the all clear. I think she may still be on annual smear tests over 10 years later.

Hi everyone

Do you get a free Pap smear and mammogram annually with NHS?

As you know, it's free with any insurance we have in U.S.

When I looked up, they say it's every 3 yrs for women of my age

They don't seem to offer free mammogram every year like United States.

Pap smear is every 3 years and done by your GP (my US obgyn practice also updated to every 3 years unless there were issues that needed monitoring too about 5 years ago).

Mammograms are when you're over 50 but I'm not sure of the frequency, but they are also covered if there's a concern - you'd see your GP and they would make a referral to the breast clinic.

Sent from my Nexus 5X using Tapatalk

Mammograms are when you're over 50 but I'm not sure of the frequency, but they are also covered if there's a concern - you'd see your GP and they would make a referral to the breast clinic.

Sent from my Nexus 5X using Tapatalk

Here our GP's surgery brings in a mobile unit which parks in the surgery car park and they do all the routine scheduled mammograms at the same time. My wife says that it is quite a different experience to what she was used to in the USA. No waiting around in a comfortable reception area, just turn up at your appointment time to the trailer and it is "wham, bam, thank you maam" and she is outa there.

There's a building amount of evidence to suggest that yearly mammograms can actually cause cancer. The level of radiation used to see the soft tissues is quite high - higher radiation is know to be carcinogenic. Also, they don't detect all breast cancers... so it is probably in our best interests that they aren't done yearly!!

The US is a bit  over-medicalised in certain areas...

There's a building amount of evidence to suggest that yearly mammograms can actually cause cancer. The level of radiation used to see the soft tissues is quite high - higher radiation is know to be carcinogenic. Also, they don't detect all breast cancers... so it is probably in our best interests that they aren't done yearly!!

The US is a bit  over-medicalised in certain areas...

OH BOY....I agree that it's over-medicalised in certain areas but I became so used to that after being in that culture for so long;)