Cervical screening samples received and reported
Updated 25 May 2022
Applies to England
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This publication is available at https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/be-clear-on-cancer-first-national-cervical-screening-saves-lives-campaign/cervical-screening-samples-received-and-reported
This is one of a series of summaries produced for the campaign, each focusing on a different evaluation measure (referred to as a metric) which reflects a key point in the patient pathway. These metrics should not be considered in isolation. Please refer to the considerations when interpreting these results.
Main findings
The first national ‘Cervical Screening Saves Lives’ campaign appears to have had an impact on the number of cervical samples received and reported by screening laboratories.
Background
This metric considers whether the ‘Cervical Screening Saves Lives’ campaign had an impact on the number of cervical samples received and reported by the screening laboratories in England.
At the time of the campaign there were 45 laboratories reporting cervical samples in England. Screening laboratories report monthly activity to the screening quality assurance service (SQAS) within Public Health England (PHE).
This summary reports
- samples received, which are screening samples received and booked on to the laboratory computer system
- samples reported, which are screening samples where a result has been recorded by the laboratory and then sent to the call and recall service for the result letter to be issued
An increase in individuals responding to their screening invitation will mean that screening laboratories receive more samples. However, the number of samples reported is less clearly linked to activity as there may be issues with laboratory capacity and staffing which delay results.
Methods
The analysis period was March to June 2019. Data for this period was compared to the same months in 2018. Further information on the methodology used for the campaign analysis is available.
Results for samples received
The months after Christmas (January to March) historically see a peak in samples received by laboratories. Nearly 340,000 samples were received in March 2019, the first month of the campaign.
Figure 1 below compares samples received by screening laboratories in England for the same months in the years 2018 and 2019.
Figure 1: number of samples received by screening laboratories, for years 2018 and 2019
| Year | Year 2018 | Year 2019 |
|---|---|---|
| March | 286,034 | 339,604 |
| April | 270,846 | 303,442 |
| May | 259,663 | 283,786 |
| June | 235,380 | 239,710 |
The data show that:
- in March, there was a significant 18.7% increase from 286,034 in 2018 to 339,604 in 2019 (p<0.001)
- in April, there was a significant 12.0% increase from 270,846 in 2018 to 303,442 in 2019 (p<0.001)
- in May, there was a significant 9.3% increase from 259,663 in 2018 to 283,786 in 2019 (p<0.001)
- in June, there was a small but significant 1.8% increase from 235,380 in 2018to 239,710 in 2019 (p<0.001)
The increases seen during the analysis period are above the long term trend.
Figure 2 below shows a longer term trend for samples received by screening laboratories in England from 2017 to 2020.
Figure 2: number of samples received by screening laboratories, from April 2017 to March 2020
The dotted line shows the linear trend for samples received over this time.
The line graph above shows an overall change from 248,811 in April 2017 to 202,317 in March 2020. The lowest point of the line is 185,471 in December 2017. The highest point of the line is 332,308 in April 2019.
Results for samples reported
Over 320,000 samples were reported in March 2019, the first month of the campaign.
Figure 3 below compares samples reported by screening laboratories in England for the same months in the years 2018 and 2019.
Figure 3: number of samples reported by screening laboratories, for years 2018 and 2019
| Year | Year 2018 | Year 2019 |
|---|---|---|
| March | 307,760 | 323,213 |
| April | 280,351 | 319,509 |
| May | 283,135 | 328,848 |
| June | 280,190 | 293,984 |
The data shows that:
- in March, there was a small but significant 5.0% increase from 307,760 in 2018 to 323,213 in 2019 (p<0.001)
- in April, there was a significant 14.0% increase from 280,351 in 2018 to 319,509 in 2019 (p<0.001)
- in May, there was a significant 16.1% increase from 283,135 in 2018 to 328,848 in 2019 (p<0.001)
- in June, there was a small but significant 4.9% increase from 280,190 in 2018 to 293,984 in 2019 (p<0.001)
The increases seen during the analysis period are above the long term trend.
Figure 4 below shows a longer term trend for samples reported by screening laboratories in England from 2017 to 2020.
Figure 4: number of samples reported by screening laboratories, from April 2017 to March 2020
The dotted line shows the linear trend for samples received over this time.
The line graph above shows an overall change from 262,219 in April 2017 to 289,314 in March 2020. The lowest point of the line is 221,021 in December 2017. The highest point of the line is 328,848 in May 2019.
Conclusions
There was a statistically significant increase in samples received and samples reported during the campaign which is above the long term trend.
The link to the timing of the campaign appears stronger for samples received. This could reflect an increased response by individuals to their invitation or those overdue being prompted by the campaign.
The increase in samples reported is likely to be confounded by issues of laboratory capacity and staffing. These were issues during the campaign period which occurred during the rollout of human papillomavirus (HPV) primary screening across England.
The ‘Cervical Screening Saves Lives’ campaign appears to have had a short-term impact on samples received and reported.
Get advice on the signs and symptoms of cancer from the NHS website. You can also find out more about the evaluation of Be Clear on Cancer campaigns.