MONTHS-LONG WAIT FOR CERVICAL CANCER CHECKS ‘GIVING WOMEN SLEEPLESS NIGHTS’ 

By Lucy Ashton

The months-long wait for cervical cancer checks is “giving women sleepless nights”, Scottish Labour has warned, after it emerged some are waiting more than eight months for further checks.  

Some patients waiting for a colposcopy – the cervix examination that is a follow up to an abnormal smear test and can help identify cervical cancer – have been left in limbo for months. 

In NHS Tayside, the longest wait for a colposcopy was a staggering 266 days.

Others in NHS Borders and NHS Ayrshire and Arran waited 259 days and 238 days respectively.

The damning figures may not capture the extent all patients are waiting as the 2024 data is not yet complete.  

Average waits for patients have also spiralled, with four health boards reporting average waiting times of more than two months in 2024 in the data recorded so far. 

In NHS Borders, the longest average waiting time was three times longer than in 2019, while in NHS Tayside it was two and a half times longer. 

The damning figures may not capture the extent all patients are waiting as the 2024 data is not yet complete.

The wait times are not directly comparable due to health boards’ varied recording processes but show the longest average waiting times rising in all but one health board, NHS Highland.

Jackie Baillie, Scottish Labour’s Health spokesperson, said: “For those who have been referred for a follow up test, every day without an appointment is another day filled with anxiety and stress followed by a sleepless night. 

“Routine checks prevent tragedy but they only work if the results are quickly processed and at-risk patients identified.

“Cancer doesn’t wait – the SNP must ensure that every woman who gets tested is confident that the NHS is there for her if she needs it.” 

Average waits for colposcopies by health board (days)* 

Health Board	2019	2020	2021	2022	2023	2024	change 2024-2019
NHS Ayrshire & Arran	68	102	70	66	79	91	34%
NHS Borders	26	43	32	23	35	78	200%
NHS Dumfries & Galloway	40	88	71	50	46	76	90%
NHS Fife	Not provided
NHS Forth Valley	25	39	37	49	42	49	96%
NHS Grampian	21	14	28	28	35	35	67%
NHS Greater Glasgow & Clyde	43	61	146	183	178	57	33%
NHS Highland	60	98	88	67	26	30	-50%
NHS Lanarkshire**	Not provided in a comparable format
NHS Lothian	23	143	24	21	20	24	4%
NHS Orkney	Not available
NHS Shetland	32	34	39	29	32	33	3%
NHS Tayside	28	14	42	77	91	70	150%
NHS Western Isles	20	32	25	22	34	29	45%

 Longest waits for colposcopies by health board (days)* 

Health Board	2019	2020	2021	2022	2023	2024	change 2024-2019
NHS Ayrshire & Arran	170	216	224	185	250	238	40%
NHS Borders	77	595	273	84	161	259	236%
NHS Dumfries & Galloway	154	309	289	264	237	232	51%
NHS Fife	Not provided
NHS Forth Valley	79	280	105	448	103	132	67%
NHS Grampian	49	63	63	56	84	70	43%
NHS Greater Glasgow & Clyde	411	80	307	279	425	197	-52%
NHS Highland	161	381	194	219	260	96	-40%
NHS Lanarkshire**	Not provided in a comparable format
NHS Lothian	108	369	362	81	144	92	-15%
NHS Orkney	Not available
NHS Shetland	86	178	309	111	116	173	101%
NHS Tayside	175	35	119	287	448	266	52%
NHS Western Isles	42	273	57	62	92	91	117%

 *Please note that some health boards have provided data relating to patients referred for a colposcopy following cervical screening, whereas others have given data for all referrals to an outpatient colposcopy clinic.

Data for 2024 is incomplete and days have been rounded.

Some Health Boards have pointed out that longer waits will include cases where patients have cancelled appointments or had their appointment rescheduled for clinical reasons. 

**NHS Lanarkshire could only provide data on the number of outpatient completed waits by time period. The most recent data for 2024 showed that 48.5 per cent of completed waits were within the 85 to 126 day period, whilst 41.9 per cent were within the 127 to 182 day period.

Source: Scottish Labour FOI.