Women Can Now Safely Screen for Cervical Cancer at Home. The American cancer society has approved self collected at home tests.
The American Cancer Society (ACS) has approved self-collected at-home HPV tests as a safe alternative to traditional clinic-based cervical cancer screening for women at average risk.
The test, developed by Teal Health and FDA-approved in May, uses a vaginal swab that is sent to a certified lab for analysis, avoiding the need for a speculum exam.
Experts note that discomfort associated with in-office exams has kept many women from being screened.
Half of U.S. women diagnosed with cervical cancer in the past decade had not undergone testing, said experts.
Updated ACS guidelines recommend that women aged 25–65 undergo primary HPV testing, with self-collected samples repeated every three years if negative.
Traditional in-office tests should be repeated every five years.
The guidelines also highlight the protective effect of HPV vaccination, such as Merck’s Gardasil, which reduces cervical cancer risk by up to 90% when administered before age 17.
Despite screening programs halving cervical cancer rates since the 1970s, more than 13,000 cases and over 4,000 deaths are expected in the U.S. this year.
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