The Minister for Health, Mr Martin, today announced the BreastCheck cancer screening programme would be extended nationwide.
Under the extension, about 130,000 women in the target population 50 to 64 years of age will be eligible for screening. Mr Martin said the programme expects to diagnose some 400 cancers per annum among this population.
The extension will take two years and involves two new screening centres in Cork and Galway.
Last month Mr Martin extended the service to three more counties but he was widely criticised for not extending it to the rest of the State.
The programme, which began in March 2000 and covered the Eastern Regional Health Authority, Midland Health Board and North Eastern Health Board areas, has screened more than 83,000 women out of 110,000 called for screening.
The Department of Health says this represents a 75 per cent uptake.
The BreastCheck clinical unit in the Western area will be at University College Hospital Galway, with two associated mobile units.
