Cancer patient calls for new screening as Lib Dems bid to ‘end medical misogyny’

A woman with stage four ovarian cancer is calling for a national screening programme for the disease to be introduced.

Kirsten Herbst Taylor also wants annual gynaecological checks for women, arguing these “are not optional, they are necessary”.

Liberal Democrats backed her call for annual tests as activists at the party’s Scottish conference supported a motion on medical misogyny, highlighting the “failings of the NHS” and accusing the Scottish Government of “years or negligence towards women”.

Scottish ministers must “urgently” publish the second phase of their women’s health plan, the motion demanded.

Ms Herbst Taylor said a national screening programme is needed for ovarian cancer, similar to schemes already in place to try to detect cases of breast and cervical cancer.

She told party activists at their conference in Edinburgh her cancer was already at an advanced stage when she was diagnosed during a routine check-up at her local doctors surgery.

She underwent a 12-hour operation, and six months of chemotherapy, but told the conference that only 15% of women diagnosed with the disease at stage four are still alive five years later.

Ms Herbst Taylor said around 600 women in Scotland are diagnosed with ovarian cancer every year, describing it as “the most lethal gynaecological cancer”.

She added: “We have national screening programmes for breast and cervical cancer, we do not have one for ovarian cancer.

“Instead we rely on women recognising vague symptoms and primary care identifying a rare disease early enough to alter outcomes.

“That is not a systematic early detection strategy.”

She called for a national screening programme to be established for ovarian and other gynaecological cancers, and for women to also have an entitlement to an annual gynaecological check-up.

She said: “Even at stage four there is hope, treatment advances mean many women live for years with good quality of life, but earlier diagnosis reduces the need for aggressive treatment and dramatically improves survival.

“Early detection saves lives. A national screening programme and annual gynaecological checks are not optional, they are necessary.

“They are a reality in other countries, such as Austria, Switzerland, France, Spain, Germany, Turkey, Thailand and Cuba. Let’s make this a reality in Scotland.”

Women’s health minister Jenni Minto said: “We are committed to improving health services for women. That’s why we invested £13 million in additional funding to health boards this year to target long waits for gynaecology.

“Phase two of the women’s health plan, launched last month, responds to the concerns of women across Scotland: it demonstrates that women’s voices have been heard, and that we are taking action.

“We are committed to improving the health of women and girls in Scotland and ensuring we have sustainable services that meet their needs.

“The expert UK National Screening Committee (UK NSC), which advises the UK nations on screening policy, last reviewed the evidence for ovarian cancer screening in July 2017, and did not recommend a screening programme as there is not yet a suitably accurate test.

“However, if the UK NSC were to make a positive recommendation to introduce ovarian screening, we would work with the NHS to take that forward.”