AN SNP MP has hit out at Matt Hancock for a "misleading and off-putting" tweet that said women could do a smear test at home as part of a pilot project.

Dr Philippa Whitford, a breast cancer surgeon, said women would need to have the long arms of Mr Men character Mr Tickle to carry out their own smear test.

The UK Health Secretary said more than 31,000 women will be offered kits to "carry out smear tests in the privacy and convenience of their own homes" in parts of London where screening appointment attendance is low.

Tweeting a link to the NHS England announcement, the Health Secretary added: "Cervical screening is life-saving, so this is a great step forward."

The kits Hancock is referring to are a swab test for the Human Papillomavirus Virus (HPV), which can lead to cervical cancer, but women will still need to have a smear test.

The home swab aims to be a simple way for women to do the test themselves, rather than have one done for them by a general practice nurse.

Dr Whitford said she is "very supportive" of the project but called for Hancock to delete the tweet as it contains false information.

She told The National: "I have no issue with the testing of HPV – we are doing that in Scotland too – nor is there anything wrong with asking women to do a vaginal test at home. 

"Women know what a smear test is and the idea of telling them you could do it at home would put them off. It is just a vaginal swab. You’d have to be a contortionist and have the very long arms of Mr Tickle to do a smear at home."

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At the time of writing, Hancock has not deleted the tweet which has been up since yesterday morning. Dr Whitford said she has had no response from Hancock or his department about her criticism of the post.

She went on to say that the swab test is much simpler than a smear test, adding: "For some women the uterus tilts the wrong way so it’s even harder to get at the cervix.

"It is much more like putting in a tampon and then taking it back out. You can’t see your own cervix. The speculum allows someone else to see it. It's a simple swab – a stick with a cotton bud – to take a swab of the vagina and women could do that easily at home."

"I don’t care that people are saying Hancock is using the term smear test as a shortcut," Whitford went on. "I’ve spent 33 years explaining breast cancer to women and you shouldn’t patronise women or lie to them. There's no need to make it sound scary when you are only asking for a swab."

Whitford concluded: "We have the potential to eliminate cervical cancer in Scotland by encouraging people to take part in screening. One of my close friends lost her daughter who was in her late 20s to cervical cancer. It's so preventable."

A spokesperson for the Department of Health said Hancock had "followed the wording" of NHS England's press release.

The post was criticised by other doctors, with clinical oncologist Mark Gaze saying: "A vaginal swab for HPV testing is not a cervical smear test. If HPV is identified as a result of the swab, cervical cytology – a “smear” test – will still be indicated. This is not simply a pedantic criticism about loose use of language."

Another said: "This is causing a lot of confusion. You won’t be able to perform a smear on yourself - you’d have to possess super human flexibility. It’s a swab test for cervical cancer causing strains of HPV which is the first test that is carried out on a routine smear."

The London-based Vagina Museum, which is currently closed due to the coronavirus lockdown, said Hancock's tweet was "incorrect and misleading".

In a lengthy thread on Twitter, it pointed out that it is "impossible" for women "to perform a smear test on yourself unless you are incredibly flexible and have absolutely perfect aim to hit your cervix".

The post went on: "The self sampling pilot isn't cervical screening.

"Those who receive the kits are taking a swab from their vagina to check for Human Papillomavirus (HPV), a virus which can cause cervical cancer. People whose sample contains HPV will then be asked to go for a standard smear test.

"The study is targeting people who haven't responded to invitations from their GPs to come for a smear test. It's not a replacement for cervical screening, it's a way of reaching those who are not having their smears."

The Vagina Museum added: "This isn't just us being contrary. Terminology matters. A self-sampled vaginal swab checking for HPV is entirely different to a cervical smear test, and we mustn't conflate them."

They swab kits go to women aged 25-64 years who are 15 months overdue for a check and live in Barnet, Camden, Islington, Newham and Tower Hamlets where screening appointment attendance is low.

It is the first time home smear tests have been trialled in England and is being rolled out through 166 GP practices, as part of the national NHS Cervical Screening Programme.

Although the HPV vaccine, brought into use in 2008, is expected to all but eliminate the virus from Britain in the coming generations, women who turned 12 before then may still be at risk from the virus. 

HPV viruses are spread through sex and mostly do not cause any symptoms or serious harm, but may raise the risk of cancer in later life. 

Cervical cancer can develop at a young age, often affecting women in their 30s and 40s, and around half of women who develop it die within 10 years of their diagnosis.