Hundreds of women ‘died early’ after cancer scan mix-up

Health Secretary admits 450,000 women
missed breast cancer screening after computer error

One-Minute Read

The NHS screens all women between the ages of 50 and 70 for
breast cancer every three years. They should receive a letter from
their GP about the test, which aims to catch cancer early when it
is easier to treat.

But Jeremy Hunt told the Commons that 450,000 women aged 68 to
71 did not receive invitations to a final routine breast cancer
screening because of a computer glitch.

The error was caused by a computer algorithm failure that
happened in 2009 but was only discovered in January this year after
a review by Public Health England (PHE).

This meant women approaching their 71st birthday were not
sent an invitation for a final breast scan, with subsequent
computer modelling suggesting that between 135 and 270 women may
have had their lives shortened as a result.

Hunt apologised “wholehearted and unreservedly” to the women and
their families and announced an independent review to investigate
the scandal, but the medical profession has warned the implication
for GPs will potentially be “significant”.

According to The Daily Telegraph, the inquiry will examine
how the failings were allowed to continue for almost a decade.

The review will examine whether the problems, which began under
Labour, were detected at any level, and whether any matters were
referred to ministers.

Hunt added that his department would contact the families of
women who had died of breast cancer and whom it believed had missed
a screening, to apologise, while family members would have their
concerns investigated and compensation may be payable if the error
was found to have led to an earlier death.