Effectiveness of an organized cervical cancer screening program in Korea: Results from a cohort study

Abstract

Although the value of cervical cancer screening is widely acknowledged, the effectiveness of an organized cervical cancer screening program in Korea has never been evaluated. We investigated the associations of the frequency of cervical cancer screening with cervical cancer incidence using data from a large prospective cohort study. In this analysis, 253,472 women without a hysterectomy or previous cancer diagnosis were included. Follow-up was between 1995 and 2002. Frequency of Pap smear testing was determined by searching the National Health Examination Database. Using the Korean Central Cancer Registry, 248 cases of invasive cervical cancer and 346 cases of carcinoma in situ (CIS) of the cervix were identified. Subjects screened 2 or more times showed a 71% (corrected reduction 60%) and a 66% (corrected reduction 53%) reduced risk of invasive cervical cancer and CIS of the cervix, respectively, as compared with unscreened subjects [relative risk (RR) 5 0.29; 95% confidence interval (CI) 5 0.20-0.45; RR 5 0.34; 95% CI 5 0.25-0.46, respectively]. Women with a normal or benign pap smear had a statistically significantly lower risk of invasive cervical cancer and CIS of cervix compared with those never screened. In age-stratified analyses, there was a significant reduction in cervical cancer incidence among women aged 30 and over who were screened 2 or more times compared with women never screened. The results of this prospective cohort study show that regular screening of cervical cancer reduces invasive cervical cancer incidence and CIS of the cervix among Korean women.

Perceived Susceptibility, and Cervical Cancer Screening Benefits and Barriers in Malaysian Women Visiting Outpatient Clinics

“…This finding completely contradicts the studies conducted by Leyva et al (2006), Bessler et al (2007)and Agurto et al (2004), which reported various barriers to cervical cancer screening among the poor, the less educated, single women and married women. In most previous studies, it was found that the socio-demographic characteristics of women had an influence on the rate of Pap smear testing (Akyüz et al, 2006;Kaku et al, 2008;Atar et al, 2009;Jun et al, 2009;Uysal and Birsel, 2009). …”

Women's Perceptions and Attitudes about Cervical Cancer in Turkey: Kato's Device as an Alternative to the Pap Smear

“…In many studies, it was determined that the sociodemographic characteristics of women had an influence on the rate of having Pap testing (Akyuz et al, 2006;Jun et al, 2009;Uysal et al, 2009). The rate of taking the Pap Smear Test among women in Turkey according to their socio-demographic characteristics has been investigated in various studies conducted by Turkish researchers.…”

Incidence and mortality trend of cervical cancer in 11 cancer registries of China

“…An early cervical cancer-screening program in a population of 22,106 women aged over 25 years in a rural county of China indicated that the relative risk of cervix cancer was 0.33 in women with three or more negative smear tests [13] , supporting the cervical cancer screening is an efficient method for cervical cancer control [14,15] .…”