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Self-Sampling as a Plausible Alternative to Screen Cervical Cancer Precursor Lesions in a Population with Low
Ana Isabel Caleia1, Catarina Pires1, Jacinta de Fátima Pereira1
1Life and Health Sciences Research Institute (ICVS), School of Health Sciences, University of Minho, Braga, Portugal.
Background:
Cervical cancer is the fourth most common cancer in the world. A raised incidence and mortality parallel a low participation rate in screening, namely screening in poor countries and among specific populations of developed countries. Cervical or vaginal self-sampling may increase adherence to screening due to its low costs and elevated sensibility and specificity. Our main goal was to compare self-sampling with physician sampling and to evaluate the participation rate of women formerly non-adherent to cervical cancer screening.
Study Design:
We identified relevant studies from PubMed. Studies were eligible for inclusion if they fulfilled the following criteria: women aged between 16 and 80 years, poor and developed countries that use self-sampling, women with a low participation rate in screening and studies published since 2013. After fully reading the articles, data were extracted to an Excel sheet to -display all relevant information in an organized manner. -Results: We identified 18 studies, which altogether enrolled 22,118 women. Self-sampling and physician sampling are quite similar regarding the HPV detection rate. Women have a low participation rate mainly because of limited access to health services, religious and culture beliefs, and lack of time due to several demanding tasks in daily life. Self-sampling shows a significant increase in acceptability and preference compared to physician sampling.
Conclusion:
Self-sampling is a reliable method to involve women in opportunistic or organized screening programs for cervical cancer prevention.
