Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, if he will change guidelines on cervical smear tests to permit GPs to conduct such tests on women outside of routine screening time frames, if the GP believes that such tests are necessary to investigate presenting symptoms.

A cervical screening test is a population screening test, not a diagnostic test, and is therefore not appropriate for women with symptoms. Waiting two weeks for a smear test result could delay examination by a gynaecologist. The Department has published guidance for general practitioners (GPs) on managing young women aged 20-24 with abnormal vaginal bleeding. This is available at:

http://www.cancerscreening.nhs.uk/cervical/publications/doh-guidelines-young-women.pdf

Information for women of all ages on the symptoms of cervical cancer is available on the NHS Choices website at:

http://www.nhs.uk/conditions/cancer-of-the-cervix/pages/introduction.aspx

The Department advises women who are concerned about cervical cancer to speak to their GP.