US Preventive Services Task Force Endorses New Option For Cervical Cancer Screening For Women Aged 30 Or Older

The New York Times (12/10, Caryn Rabin) reports physicians “routinely advise that women undergoing screening for cervical cancer receive Pap smears every three years beginning at age 21.” Now, starting “at 30, women have a new option.” Rather than “undergoing a pelvic exam, these patients may go to a doctor’s office and collect their own vaginal sample to be tested for human papillomavirus, the infection that causes most cases of cervical cancer, according to new guidelines issued on Tuesday by a national health services panel.” The FDA approved “self-collection of the sample” in May. According to the Times, “the HPV test should be repeated every five years from age 30 until 65, when most women can stop screening, the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force said.” The AP (12/10, Johnson) reports the “draft recommendations from the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force are aimed at getting more people screened and spreading the word that women can take their own vaginal samples to check for cancer-causing HPV.” Under the guidelines, “women ages 30 to 65 can still opt for a Pap test done by a doctor every three years.” CNN (12/10, Howard) reports, “The draft recommendation continues to recommend screening with cervical cytology alone every three years for women in their 20s.” HealthDay (12/10, Foster) reports, “Women can now use a swab to collect their own HPV samples, the task force said, because studies have shown self-collection is as accurate as when the tissue sample is collected by a clinician and it is proven to increase screening.”