Your role in encouraging cancer screening
As a healthcare provider you play an important part in the cancer screening programs.
Patients are more likely to take part in a program if a healthcare provider recommends participation. Sharing your knowledge about the screening programs with your patients:
- increases your understanding of the programs
- encourages them to participate.
Learn more about the role of healthcare providers in the:
- BreastScreen Australia Program
- National Bowel Cancer Screening Program
- National Cervical Screening Program
- National Lung Cancer Screening Program.
The National Cancer Screening Register (NCSR)
You can access information about your patients’ participation in the National Cervical Screening, National Bowel Cancer Screening and National Lung Cancer Screening Program through the NCSR.
Use the NCSR Healthcare Provider Portal to:
- check a patients’ bowel, cervical and lung screening history
- lodge clinical forms relating to the programs electronically
- order patients a new bowel testing kit.
Practices using Best Practice, MedicalDirector and Communicare can now integrate their practice systems with the NCSR to view their patient’s cervical screening record directly within a patient record. All other users can access their patient’s screening records via PRODA. Visit National Cancer Screening Register website for more information.
Clinical and screening guidelines
The following evidence-based clinical and screening guidelines are available to guide your decision making and help manage cancer screening with your patients:
Cancer Screening Packs for Healthcare Providers 2026
From September 2026, cancer screening packs have been distributed to over 7,000 general practices nationwide.
Each pack contains everything needed for practices and general practitioners to start more
cancer screening conversations, including:
- A3 posters for each national cancer screening program. Display these posters in your waiting room to prompt patients to raise screening with their doctor
- demonstration samples of the bowel cancer home test kit and cervical self-collection swab
- illustrated guides on how the screening process works to guide your conversations with patients
- information for healthcare providers on program eligibility
- resources for healthcare providers to facilitate screening conversations.
Some resources, such as fact sheets and posters are available in other languages.
Digital copies can be found at health.gov.au/hcp-screening-toolkit.
Stay up to date
Keep up with changes to the screening programs:
- BreastScreen Australia
- National Bowel Cancer Screening Program
- National Cervical Screening Program
- National Lung Cancer Screening Program.
Resources
Screening program resources
Health sector resources, including guides, fact sheets, are available for:
- BreastScreen Australia
- National Bowel Cancer Screening Program
- National Cervical Screening Program
- National Lung Cancer Screening Program.
More cancer screening information
Learn more about the role of healthcare providers in our 4 screening programs.
