Up to 40,000 low-income women will be eligible for free breast cancer screenings over the next five years, with an additional $2 million being added to an existing screening programme. The programme is a collaboration between the Breast Cancer Foundation (BCF) and Health Promotion Board (HPB), and started in March last year.

Lower income women aged 50 and above who are Community Health Assist Scheme (Chas) card holders are eligible for the free mammograms. Those who qualify will receive a letter from the HPB.

This programme compliments existing government subsidies for mammograms making the procedure completely free for this group of individuals.

In 2013, about $300,000 was provided, which was expected to last two years. However, the fund was depleted within the first seven weeks of the programme's launch last March. So far, a total of 8,700 women have benefited from the programme.