VITAL health screening programmes in Wales will soon start to send invitations and reminders again to those eligible, as services plan to reopen.

The first to start the process will be Cervical Screening Wales from the end of June.

The move follows the announcement in March of a pause in invitations for such programmes, which affected Cervical Screening Wales, Breast Test Wales, Bowel Screening Wales, Diabetic Eye Screening Wales and Wales Abdominal Aortic Aneurysm Screening.

Those who are now overdue an invitation or a reminder will be contacted based on clinical priority. Cervical screening invitations will be sent to women overdue a non-routine repeat screening.

Provided that all key conditions remain safe for participants and staff, on a monthly basis invitations will be sent to those overdue a routine screening. This will be followed by reminders for those who have missed appointments.

“We would like to thank the public for their understanding and patience following the announcement of a pause in screening services in March," said Dr Sharon Hillier, director of the screening division of Public Health Wales.

“We have been in unprecedented times, and pausing the invitations for these programmes was a difficult recommendation for us to make.

"However, we had to ensure that NHS services were able to focus as matter of priority to respond to the coronavirus pandemic, as well as to reduce the need for participants’ travel and potential contact with others at the peak of the pandemic.

“We are now in a position restart some of these programmes, beginning with Cervical Screening Wales at the end of June. We are taking a staged approach to restarting screening programmes based on clinical priority, and will keep the arrangements under constant review.”

As a next step, Public Health Wales aims to start to invite clinical priority groups for breast screening, bowel screening, and then abdominal aortic aneurysm screening and diabetic eye screening later in the summer.

But inviting all others who are overdue for a screening programme will take many months, and individuals will be contacted in the usual way for the screening for which they are eligible.

Antenatal screening, newborn bloodspot screening and newborn hearing screening programmes have continued during the coronavirus pandemic as these all have short window of time for prompt identification and treatment.

Anyone worried that they may have symptoms of any of the conditions that we screen for should not wait, but should contact their GP without delay. Contact details of the programmes will be on the letters or the relevant programme website.