270 lives shortened by failure in cancer screening in UK

LONDON: As many as 270 women’s lives may have been shortened after an IT failure in England’s breast cancer screening programme meant 450,000 patients were not invited for appointments, Britain’s health minister said yesterday.

Jeremy Hunt apologised in parliament for the ‘serious failure,’ which he said was the result of a mistake in the computer system’s algorithm, and ordered an independent review.

“Our current best estimate, which comes with caveats is that there may be between 135 and 270 women who had their lives shortened as a result,” he said.

“Tragically there are likely to be some people in this group who would have been alive today if the failure had not happened.”

The IT error took place in 2009 but only came to light in January this year, Hunt said.

Of the 450,000 women affected, 150,000 have died.

The remaining women are now in their 70s.

“For them and others it is incredibly upsetting to know that you did not receive an invitation for screening at the correct time and totally devastating to hear you may have lost or be about to lose a loved one because of administrative incompetence,” said Hunt.

Women in England between the ages of 50 and 70 are normally invited for breast cancer screening every three years.

The IT failure meant that the women affected missed out on a routine appointment before their 70th birthday.

Cancer Research UK, a nongovernmental organisation, said the news was very concerning and advised any woman over 50 who had not had a mammogram in the last three years to book an appointment.

“It’s worth remembering that many breast cancers are still found by women themselves, outside of the screening programme, so if you notice any unusual changes in your breast see your GP (doctor) straight away,” said Emma Greenwood, director of policy and public affairs at Cancer Research UK.