Cervical cancer screening program examines the cervix to ensure it has no cancer cells.CREDIT: agefotostock Alamy Stock Photo
Screening for cervical pre-cancer among women with HIV in sub-Saharan Africa is much more accurate using a molecular test than traditional methods and could reduce deaths, replace costly and inconvenient procedure.
Findings from a 16-month prospective study among 1,200 Women Living with HIV in Burkina Faso and South Africa found that an HPV-DNA test identified a greater number of women with cervical pre-cancer (90%) compared to using traditional methods, including visual inspection and cytology (pap smear) tests, which identified 62% and 77% of women with cervical cancer and pre-cancer respectively.
The results “could play an important role in cervical cancer screening for all populations, and would ensure that women at high risk of cervical cancer are identified early,” says Helen Kelly, from the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, the lead author in the study published in PLOS Medicine. “This would ensure that treatment could be offered to women who need it, and result in fewer clinic visits and reduced inconvenience to all women and costs to the service.”
According to Nicolas Meda, a co-investigator of HPV in Africa Research Partnership (HARP), and a former minister of health in Burkina Faso, these screening methods will dramatically improve the fight against cervical cancer in Burkina Faso.
The researchers suggest their findings could help inform decision-makers on future cervical cancer screening strategies.
