NHS Breast Screening Programme

Anyone registered with a GP as female will be invited for NHS breast screening every three years between the ages of 50 and 71. You'll get a letter in the post inviting you.

Our service delivers the NHS Breast Screening Programme for patients registered with GP practices in Warrington, Halton, St Helens, Knowsley and for patients registered with a small number of GP practices in Cheshire West and Chester local authority area.

A list is compiled from GP records, so it is important to make sure the details held for you at your GP practice are up to date and correct.

The invitation letter is sent out automatically, so there is no need to phone and make your own appointment.

All women will receive their first invitation for a mammogram (an X-Ray image of the breast) sometime between their 50th and 53rd birthdays. We invite each GP's registered patients for screening in turn, so women will not necessarily get their invitation in the year that they turn 50. As long as you are registered with a GP, you will receive an invitation before your 53rd birthday. Then you'll be invited every three years until you turn 71.

Please remember that anyone of any age with concerns about their breasts / chest should contact their GP immediately.

To enable women to be screened closer to home, breast screening is carried out at different sites across the region. Read more about our locations.

The NHS Breast Screening Programme is subject to monitoring by the Quality Assurance Reference Centre (QARC). It ensures rigorous quality assurance standards are maintained.

Breast screening for the Warrington, Halton, St Helens and Knowsley areas is managed from the screening office, based in Kendrick Wing at Warrington Hospital.