Women urged to 'beat their fear and get a smear'

Rates of cervical cancer in Jersey have doubled in the last year, which health providers believe may be linked to fewer people getting tested.

Cervical screening is offered free of charge to all women over 25 every three years and women aged 50 to 65 every five years.

However thousands of people missed their test last year while GP surgeries were closed.

HPV, a sexually transmitted infection, causes 90% of cases of cervical cancer but if detected early it can be easily treated before it turns cancerous.

Rachel Burnham put off having a smear test for eight years and in October 2020 she was diagnosed with advanced cervical cancer.

In January she underwent seven weeks of treatment at the Royal Marsden Hospital in London.

Since smear tests restarted in September there has been extra government funding to deal with the backlog. However health providers say more funding is needed to keep up with demand.

On Saturday 20th March doctors and nurses from the Raynor Ward will take part in a fundraising walk to raise money for Macmillan and Jersey Cancer Relief.

The walk from St Brelade's Parish Hall to St Helier starts at 10am and is collecting donations online.