Home cervical screening tests being trialled in the UK are expected to also come on stream in Ireland, a leading gynaecologist has told the Irish Mail on Sunday.

'Do it yourself' smear tests are currently being trialled by the NHS in England where they have had a positive reception from clients and clinicians, according to the British Medical Journal.

In Ireland, testing for human papillomavirus (HPV), which causes most cervical cancers, is still done only as part of the HSE's cervical screening programme in a clinical setting.

But home tests would represent a 'great opportunity' for women who do not attend primary care, according to Ruaidhrí McVey, a consultant gynaecologist and gynaecological oncologist at the Mater Private Hospital in Dublin.

He explained: 'As opposed to having to have a speculum exam, women can take a self-smear themselves, take a swab and send it off to the laboratory in a postage-paid envelope and get the result back.'

The cancer specialist said the number of women who would prefer tests at home to a primary care setting is 'probably a relatively small proportion', but added the tests would be 'a great opportunity, particularly for women who, for all sorts of reasons, don't attend primary care'.

He said: 'It's not routinely available in Ireland yet, but it will come on stream.'

The home cervical tests, like those undertaken in clinical settings, do not screen for all types of gynaecological cancers. The Irish Network for Gynaecological Oncology (INGO) says this is a common 'misconception', with almost one in three women (31%) believing the opposite, according to its research.

In fact, the tests do not screen for vulval, vaginal, uterine (endometrial/womb) or ovarian cancer.

Mr McVey continued that vulvar and vaginal cancer 'are considered pretty rare by comparison to endometrial and cervical cancers'.

'We have about 350 to 400 of [the latter] cancers per year, and then a slightly lesser number of ovarian cancers.'

He said there was strong awareness of cervical cancer and a successful HPV vaccination programme, but 'less so' for endometrial cancer, which usually occurs in post-menopausal women 'typically over the age of 50'.

'Menopause occurs when someone has not had a period for about a year, and so any bleeding after the age of menopause is considered abnormal,' Mr McVey said.

'The message for women is that any symptom that is new, persistent and different from before, or progressive compared to before, warrants investigation. So even if someone's had a cervical screen and they have abnormal bleeding, they should still seek advice.'

The Irish Society of Gynaecological Oncology member continued: 'Oftentimes, you'll have someone think that because they've had their cervical screening up to date, that that covers them from a gynaecological standpoint - it doesn't. The only thing a cervical screen detects is [cell changes cause by] HPV, in the hope that we can prevent a cervical cancer later on down the line. It doesn't have any bearing for endometrial cancer or for ovarian cancer.'

The same INGO research found that one in seven women delay or avoid GP visits due to embarrassment at discussing symptoms, and one in five would avoid going to the doctor because they do not want to speak to the GP's receptionist about their symptoms.

The INGO says these barriers 'can have life-threatening consequences', with almost 2,000 women across the island of Ireland diagnosed with gynaecological cancers annually.

Mr McVey stressed that primary care centres are 'excellently set up', adding: 'The vast majority of general practitioners have a female GP with a specialism in women's health. Many of them will have nurses as well. And yet, there's a little bit of reluctance about going to be examined, particularly with intimate examination.

'They don't have to have an intimate examination, but it does warrant having a conversation with somebody, and maybe they can have an ultrasound if they were hesitant about being examined internally.'