Local MP Robert Largan has welcomed the extensive upcoming schedule for mobile breast screening services in the High Peak and praised North Derbyshire Breast Screening Services for their efforts to reduce the patient backlog. The schedule dates and locations are as follows:

•    Buxton, 10.06.22 – 17.08.22
•    Chapel-en–le-frith, 23.05.22 – 11.08.22
•    Hope, 08.08.22
•    New Mills, 19.08.22

The schedule is subject to change, due to staff availability and uptake from local women. Women eligible for screening will be invited for appointments directly.

To catch up with the backlog of patients, North Derbyshire Breast Screening services are now screening at 160 per cent of pre-pandemic levels and new mammographers are being recruited. 
The mobile screening unit was withdrawn in 2020 due to Covid-19, meaning local women were asked to travel to Bakewell or Chesterfield instead. The extra distance meant that many women would be unable to make their appointment, which could mean cancer going undiagnosed.

In September 2020, High Peak MP Robert Largan launched a petition calling for the mobile screening unit to be reinstated, which over 2,000 local people signed. 

Mr Largan also led a debate in Parliament to make the case directly to the Health Minister and secured a public commitment that breast screening services would be brought back to the High Peak by July 2021. 

Robert Largan, MP for High Peak, commented:

“I am pleased to report that the schedule for breast cancer screening clinics in New Mills, Hope and Chapel-en-le-Frith this year has been published. Given the importance of early diagnosis for breast cancer survival rates, this reinstatement will undoubtedly save lives. 

“A huge thanks to local NHS staff for working so hard to bring this service back and catch up on the backlog. Thanks again to everyone who signed my petition and supported my campaign. This shows what we can achieve when we work together.”