Even though testing has caused a reduction in the number of cervical cancer cases, 20 women in Sweden still lose their lives from the cancer every year. Now, experts from Sahlgrenska Academy, University of Gothenburg in Sweden have formed a new technique to lower the number of unseen cervical cancer cases.
Since the start of organized screening in the 1960s, the incidence of women receiving a cervical cancer diagnosis has dropped significantly. Cervical cancer screening, a method which gathers cells from the cervix and analyzes them under an optical microscope, can find changes in cells early in order to prevent the development of cancer.
Nevertheless, 250 women in Sweden still die every year due to cervical cancer, while another 500 develop the cancer, regardless of intensive screenings.
The test currently being used has a sensitivity level of “low”, which requires re-testing at least every 3 years. Many tests should be re-taken because of “unreliable results”, an issue which gives many patients anxiety and ends up costing more for additional health treatments.
A complementary test, which has the potential to lower the number of missed diagnoses, has now been developed by experts at the Sahlgrenska Acadmemy, University of Gothenburg.
Maria Lidqvist, a doctoral student who presented this new technique in her thesis, commented:
“Around 70 percent of all cervical cancer cases are caused by two specific virus types, known as HPV16 and HPV18. We have developed a method that identifies proteins of these or oncogenic viruses in cells, enabling a more objective interpretation of the test results.
This method can hopefully produce a more reliable diagnosis in uncertain cases and reduce the number of missed cancer cases, as well as the number of women who have to be re-called because of cell samples that are difficult to interpret.”
In the UK, the National Health Service says that all females aged from 25 to 64 are invited for cervical screening. Those between 25 and 49 years of age are invited every three years, while older women are encouraged to come in every five years. All women aged between 25 and 64 are invited for cervical screening. Women aged between 25 and 49 are invited for testing every three years, and women older than this are invited every five years.
Most of the rest of Europe has similar guidelines.
New guidelines that were released in May of this year stated that women should receive a pap smear every 3 to 5 years. However, if they are screened for HPV at the same time, they can wait another 5 years to receive their next screening.
Written by Christine Kearney