The answer

Breast screening hit the headlines recently when health secretary Jeremy Hunt announced a review into why nearly half a million women in England between 2009 and 2018 had failed to receive invitations for mammograms. What happened was effectively a computer glitch: women were called for screening up until their 70th birthday rather than their 71st, as should be the case.

The issue came to light because Public Health England was analysing data from a trial investigating whether it was worth expanding the national programme to women as young as 47 and as old as 73 years.

In the UK, women registered with a GP are automatically invited for breast screening every three years from the age of 50 years up until their 71st birthday. After this, women are allowed to request appointments every three years.

Sarah’s GP surgery should be able to tell her when her last mammogram was and when she is likely to be next called. All women affected by the computer glitch should have, by the end of last month, received a letter inviting them for a catch-up screen. These will be conducted at local clinics following coordination by a national helpline that has been set up.