New guidelines recommend self-swab HPV test option for cervical cancer screening
The New York Times. (12/4, Agrawal) reports the American Cancer Society on Thursday “released new guidelines saying that self-collection is an acceptable way to test for the virus that causes cervical cancer.” Currently, most screening in the U.S. “takes place in a clinical setting, with a provider who uses a speculum to collect cervical cells and test them for HPV, cell abnormalities or both. In self-collection a woman can use a swab or brush to collect a sample in private, either at a doctor’s office or at home.” The guidelines “reflect years of data and recent regulatory approvals recommending self-collection of vaginal samples that can be tested for human papillomavirus, the infection that causes almost all cases of cervical cancer.” By increasing “screening through self-collection, in addition to increasing HPV vaccination,” it could “help accomplish a major public health goal: ending cervical cancer in the United States.”
Reuters (12/4, Lapid) reports the new guidelines, published in CA: A Cancer Journal for Clinicians, “will help improve compliance with screening and reduce the risk of cervical cancer, co-author Dr. Robert Smith, senior vice president of the ACS, said in a statement. Speculum exams are preferred, but self-collected vaginal specimens are acceptable, the updated recommendations say. When self-collected specimens are HPV-negative, repeat screening in three years is recommended, while negative speculum tests should be repeated every five years, the ACS says.”
From Blogfinger.net. Paul Goldfinger, MD is a member of the American Medical Association. We share selected AMA Morning Rounds for Physicians.