More than 100 000 breast cancers and 400 000 major cervical abnormalities have been detected in the 20 years of the NHS’s breast cancer and cervical cancer screening programmes in England, figures published this week show.

The NHS programmes include screening for breast cancer every three years for all women aged 50 to 70. All women between the ages of 25 and 64 can have cervical cancer screening tests every three to five years—women registered with a GP are invited for screening at these intervals.

More than 70 million screening tests for breast and cervical cancer have been carried out in England since …