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Digital breast screening

NHS England is developing digital services to support the national breast screening programme. This includes new services and replacements for outdated technology.

Replacing NBSS (the National Breast Screening Service)

The processes involved in breast screening include identifying participants, arranging appointments, taking mammograms, reading images, and recording results.

The systems currently used by breast screening offices (BSOs) to manage these tasks are no longer fit for purpose. By 2028 we aim to replace them with modern, digital services.

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Subscribe to the Breast Screening Digital Digest (Microsoft Forms) for the latest updates. More information is available on NHS Futures (login required), including previous newsletters.

Created for the NHS, by the NHS

We’re working with colleagues in breast screening to develop bespoke services that meet their needs.

Designing this within the NHS allows us to create a flexible system that meets the latest web standards, bringing many benefits such as:

  • reduced costs (and less paper)
  • natural integration with other NHS services (including the NHS App and NHS Notify)
  • improved data quality and sharing across systems
  • greater information for participants about their appointments and results
  • streamlined log in through single sign-on (fewer usernames and passwords to remember)

Transition planning

The technology being replaced includes NBSS (the National Breast Screening System), BS Select (Breast Screening Select) and BSIS (Breast Screening Information System). These existing services will continue to run alongside the systems we’re developing until all BSOs can move fully to the new services.

Prior to onboarding, all BSOs across England will be offered support to guide them through the process of adopting new systems and retiring existing technology.

Project progress

Different elements of the end-to-end service are being developed, tested and released on various timelines. This approach allows new functionality to be used by BSOs, without needing to wait for the whole system to be ready. Watch a video explaining our plans for a fully integrated service (2:27, YouTube).

Launched

  • Cohort manager - helping to select people for breast screening and preparing their data for use by other NHS services. The tool improves data quality and expands screening availability to those not typically considered for routine assessment.

Being developed

  • Digital-first communications - sending initial messages through the NHS App and SMS, with paper letters delivered to people not reached through digital channels
  • Managing appointments (to be piloted in 2026) - helping staff to manage the flow of participants during a breast screening clinic
  • Reading images (to be piloted in 2026) - allowing radiologists to review cases, record their opinion and manage arbitration
  • Reporting (to be piloted in 2026) - creating reporting dashboards that automatically connect with the NHS Federated Data Platform (FDP), replacing manual reports currently exported from BSIS

The teams involved in developing these tools regularly publish updates on the Digital screening design history.

Help us to improve the future of breast screening

Features are being actively trialled with BSOs to ensure they meet the needs of both clinical and administrative staff prior to release. Get in touch if you would like to be involved in research and testing, or if you have any other feedback or questions.