Cervical screening - Why is screening important?

Cervical screening helps prevent cervical cancer. Cervical screening in the UK saves thousands of lives from cervical cancer every year.

There are many different types of HPV, but only some high-risk types can lead to cancer. The types of HPV that cause cervical cancer do not cause any symptoms. This means you might not know anything is wrong for a long time.

As with all procedures, there is an element of risk involved. You can find more detailed information about the screening programme on GOV.UK.