Effect of Organized Cervical Cancer Screening Programs on Incidence and Mortality: A Systematic Review and...

Area of Science:

• Oncology
• Public Health
• Epidemiology

Background:

• Cervical cancer remains a significant global health concern.
• Early detection through screening is crucial for reducing incidence and mortality rates.
• The impact of organized screening programs requires ongoing evaluation.

Purpose of the Study:

• To systematically review and meta-analyze the impact of organized screening programs on cervical cancer incidence and mortality.
• To assess the effectiveness of regular versus irregular participation in screening programs.

Main Methods:

• Systematic literature review following PRISMA 2020 guidelines, searching PubMed, Scopus, and Web of Science.
• Quality assessment using the Newcastle Ottawa scale.
• Random-effects meta-analysis with Hartung-Knapp adjustment and inverse variance method to calculate pooled effect sizes.

Main Results:

• Regular participation in organized cervical cancer screening significantly reduces the likelihood of developing cervical cancer (OR=0.40) and dying from it (OR=0.31).
• Significant heterogeneity was detected among studies for both incidence and mortality.
• Absence of publication bias was indicated by Egger's and Begg's tests (p<0.05).

Conclusions:

• Organized cervical cancer screening programs are effective in reducing cancer incidence and mortality, particularly with regular participation.
• Irregular participation in screening programs yields minimal protective benefit, with risks comparable to non-participants.
• Emphasizing regular screening attendance is vital for maximizing the public health impact of these programs.