This week the American College of Obstetrics and Gynecology issued new guidelines for cervical cancer screening. They recommend women get their first Pap test at age 21 and every two years after that. Beginning at age 30, women should be tested every three years.
We found these new guidelines very similar to the American Cancer Society’s recommendation that women be screened for cervical cancer starting within three years of first intercourse and no later than age 21. At age 30, if a woman has had three years of consecutively normal pap tests, she should be tested every two to three years, according to the ACS.
Cervical cancer rates have fallen more than 50 percent in the United States in the last 30 years due to pap tests. Cervical cancer is a slow growing cancer caused by certain strains of the human papillomavirus which in many cases clears on its own or can be prevented through vaccination. The majority of deaths from cervical cancer in the US are among women who are screened infrequently or not at all.
Women, in consultation with their healthcare provider, should make the final decision on frequency of screening based on her personal risk and history. No woman should experience barriers to screenings recommended by her healthcare provide. And we should remember, women die in large numbers outside of the United States from cervical cancer because they do not have access to this life-saving test.
- Posted in Cancer News and Support
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4 Responses to “New Cervical Cancer Screening Guidelines”
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I will continue yearly screening.
I will continue with my annual screening. Just as I will continue with annual mammograms and monthly self-exam.
If early screenings for cervical and breast cancers are eliminated, what next?
Early screenings detect cancer at a treatable stage, lower cost, and improved health outcome. Elimination of screenings will lead to poor health outcomes, higher cost…unless the intent is to ration healthcare to those who are diagnosed in end stages of cancer?
I do not like the slippery slope that is occurring with regards to health care. I understand that technology is advancing, and that is terrific. However, preventative and alternative healthcare, as well as awareness of caring for ourselves, should be encouraged not eliminated.