Cervical cancer deaths falling

Deaths from cervical cancer are falling as more women come forward for screening, according to new figures from the Imperial Cancer Research Fund. It said there was a 15 per cent decrease in deaths from the cancer between 1985 and 1991, when more women had smear tests. By 1992 more than 80 per cent of women in the 20 to 64 age group had undergone an up-to-date screening programme. More than 4,500 women develop cervical cancer each year in the UK and about 2,000 die.