Jeane Freeman says cancer screening in Scotland – one of many services suspended because of the coronavirus pandemic – should resume this month.
The health secretary says some areas – for example, bowel screening – are relatively straightforward, whereas treatment that involves close contact, like breast screening, may take longer to re-introduce safely, for patients and staff.
“We need to make sure all mitigating steps are in place,” she tells Politics Scotland. “We can’t have a lot of people in a waiting room waiting for their mammogram, for example.
“So that will take a bit longer, but the intention is to begin the screening programme again this month.”