Women aged 25-49 (24 ½ in England) are invited for cervical screening (previously referred to as smear test) every three years and screening is undertaken every 5 years in women aged 50-64. Cervical screening can detect early changes in cervical cells, which if left undetected and untreated could lead to cancer of cervix. 99.9% of cervical cancers are caused by Human Papilloma Virus (HPV). Plans are in place to implement HPV primary screening into the cervical screening programme. HPV primary screening involves testing all cervical samples for HPV and undertaking cytology only on samples that are HPV positive. The decision to implement HPV primary screening in the cervical screening programme follows on from the report of the ARTISTIC Trial. This article discusses the background to the introduction of HPV primary screening.
Key Points
1. Cervical screening can detect early changes in cervical cells
2. 99.9% of cervical cancers are caused by Human Papilloma Virus (HPV)
3. HPV primary screening involves testing all cervical samples for HPV
4. Cytology will be undertaken on samples that are HPV positive only
5. Health professionals should be aware of the background to this new development
