A new online breast screening system called Te Puna* went live nationwide June 2025. It replaces 8 legacy systems and moves BreastScreen Aotearoa from paper based to digital management of the breast screening pathway.

Te Puna will automatically identify women who are eligible. A BreastScreen Aotearoa provider will then send them a secure personalised link (by email, text or letter) if they are:

  • not currently enrolled and eligible to screen, or
  • already enrolled and due for their next screen.

This is a shift away from what was an opt-in to an opt-out enrolment approach.

GPs and primary care professionals are encouraged to talk with their patients aged 45 to 69 (and women aged 70 and 74 from 1 October 2025*) to enrol/re-enrol and to book a mammogram when they receive their secure personalised link.

GPs are also requested to keep referring their patients aged 45 – 69 years (plus women aged 70 and 74 from 1 October 2025*) through current processes to ensure all eligible women are invited.

* Extending the age for breast screening started in the Nelson Marlborough district in October 2024.

*The name of the new system - Te Puna, translates to ‘the spring’ and was gifted to the programme to reflect the purpose of the BreastScreen Aotearoa programme to protect the life and health of wāhine.

Access to Te Puna for women is free

Access to Te Puna for women is free through an initiative called Zero Data, which provides free access to several health websites.

Women will not incur mobile charges or require having data on their mobiles when they access the site through the secure personalised link.