New cervical Ca screening guidelines recommend less frequent assessment

Dr. Cox sees things similarly: “We do have to keep in mind that screening in the United States is opportunistic, meaning that a majority of women do not receive reminders that it is time to schedule their next cervical screen. As a result, wider screening intervals could potentially result in less frequent screening than advised by the guidelines.”

“For some women who already get screened infrequently, co-testing has the advantage of providing a longer period of safety than that provided by cytology alone following a negative test,” Dr. Cox continues. “My only concern is that increasing the recommended screening interval to 3 years for cytology and 5 years for co-testing will undoubtedly result in some women getting screened even less frequently. A negative HPV test result has been shown to provide at least 6 years of prediction of low risk—and possibly longer—providing at least some buffer beyond the 5-year recommended interval for women who test negative on both cytology and an HPV test.”

A nod to the successes of cervical Ca screening

Cervical cancer was once the leading cause of cancer death in women in the United States. It now ranks 14^th.⁴

“The profound impact that annual Pap smears have had in reducing the incidence of and mortality from cervical cancer represents a triumph of preventive medicine,” says Dr. Kaunitz. “Over time, we have learned that beginning screening at age 21 and performing cytology less often than annually will not compromise outcomes.”

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