Cervical Cancer Screening in Low- and Middle-Income Countries

To the Editor In their recent article, Ms Lemp and colleagues presented data about lifetime prevalence of cervical cancer screening in 55 low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). As leaders of Basic Health International, a nonprofit dedicated to the elimination of cervical cancer, we believe these data can help guide initiatives to implement cervical cancer prevention in locations where women are at highest risk. However, we are concerned that the methods used in this study did not capture a full picture of current cervical cancer screening programs in LMICs because the study used only data from surveys. Surveys from Central America were at least 5 years old and since then, new implementation programs have improved cervical cancer screening rates in this region. In El Salvador, the Cervical Cancer Prevention Program, which began in 2012, resulted in screening more than 28  000 women using primary human papillomavirus (HPV) testing. Similar cervical cancer screening programs occurred in Honduras, Guatemala, and Nicaragua.
Source: JAMA - Category: General Medicine Source Type: research