It's been reported that 80,000 women have been waiting for smear test results for as long as 27 weeks.

Prior to the CervicalCheck scandal, the average waiting time was four to six weeks.

Alison Healy, Head of Digital for Today FM, has been waiting 20 weeks for her own results and has been told it will now take even longer. She described the anxiety that accompanies such a long period of uncertainty.

"There is so much misinformation and confusion out there. The system is broken and it's a disgrace."

Elaine Loughlin, political reporter with the Irish Examiner, added: "No matter whether it's the results of an x-ray or an eye test, you're going to be anxious waiting for the results."

She pointed out that women are now facing into an even longer wait for an overhaul of the system, as the government can't introduce more accurate HPV testing while there is such a backlog.