Exploring an Appropriate Method of Cervical Cancer Screening in Rural China

Background. To explore the feasibility of careHPV (human papillomavirus) with cytology triage as a cervical cancer screening in rural areas of China. Methods. A total of 7138 women aged 35 to 64 years were divided into 2 groups. Women in careHPV group (n = 3536) underwent careHPV and 288 positive subjects underwent cytology, of which 65 women were ≥ASC-US (atypical squamous cells of undetermined significance). Women in the cytology group (n = 3602) underwent cytology and 111 women were ≥ASC-US. All subjects with ≥ASC-US were referred to colposcopy and biopsy. Results. The average age of subjects was 48.2 ± 7.8 years. In the careHPV group, the HPV-positive rate was 8.1%. The detection rate of ≥ASC-US was 1.8% in the careHPV group and 3.1% in the cytology group (P = .001). There was no significant difference in detection rate of ≥CINII (cervical intraepithelial neoplasia) in the careHPV group (0.7%) and the cytology group (0.6%; P = .416). In addition, to identify 1 case ≥CINII, an average of 2.6 colposcopies were needed in the careHPV group, and 5.3 colposcopies were performed to diagnose 1 case ≥CINII in the cytology group. Conclusions. careHPV with cytology triage offered similar efficiency in identifying abnormalities of CINII and above compared with cytology screening. With the reduced requirement for cytology testing and colposcopy, careHPV may be a more favorable cervical cancer screening strategy in areas of China where there is a lack of cytology services.