After decades of good news in the fight against cervical cancer Despite decades of steady declines in infections and deaths, a new report suggests some women are being left behind.
Thanks to early detection and early treatment, the incidence of cervical cancer has plummeted by more than half over the past 50 years. Rates have declined most rapidly among the first generation, women in their early 20s. Benefit from the HPV vaccineapproved in 2006.
HPV, human papillomavirus, Causes 6 types of cancercervical cancer, etc.
According to one study, the incidence of cervical cancer among women aged 20 to 24 decreased by 65% from 2012 to 2019. Report released Wednesday From the American Cancer Society.
“Cervical cancer is one of the best-understood cancers,” said Dr. Nicholas Wentzensen, principal investigator in the Division of Clinical Genetics at the National Cancer Institute. He was not involved in the new report. “We have made incredible progress and it remains a success story.”
But not all women are benefiting from that progress.
Overall cervical cancer incidence among women of all ages has stopped declining.
Am I too old to get the HPV vaccine?
Incidence among women in their 30s and early 40s is gradually increasing. Cervical cancer diagnosis rates for women aged 30 to 44 increased by almost 2% annually from 2012 to 2019.
“We need to make sure that we don’t forget about the population that is getting a little too old for the HPV vaccine,” said Jennifer Spencer, an assistant professor of population health at the University of Texas at Austin Dell School of Medicine.
Fortunately, most of the cancers found in women in their 30s and 40s were early, curable tumors, said the senior author of the new report, director of surveillance and health equity science at the Cancer Society. said Ahmedin Jemal, Senior Vice-President. Approximately 13,800 American women are diagnosed with cervical cancer and 4,360 die from cervical cancer each year.
Jemal said researchers haven’t looked closely at why cervical cancer is increasing in some women.
But Spencer, who was not involved in the study, said testing rates could have an impact. Screening allows doctors to find and remove precancerous lesions before they become cancerous. More than half of women diagnosed with cervical cancer have one of the following: has never been shown Some people have not been tested in the past five years, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Research shows fewer women are getting regular cervical cancer screening.
Number of women aged 21 to 65 person who was tested According to the National Cancer Institute, the latest guidelines show that the rate has dropped to 72% from 87% in 2000.
Other research I found Women aged 21 to 29 were the least likely to have had their latest test, with 29% overdue. Women were also more likely to be late than scheduled if they identified as nonwhite, uninsured, rural, and gay, lesbian, or bisexual, according to the study.
U.S. Preventive Services Task Force It is recommended Women aged 21 to 29 are screened every three years with cytology (examination of cells under a microscope). Women between the ages of 30 and 65 can be screened either every 3 years with a Pap smear or every 5 years with an HPV test or a combination of the two tests. HPV testing can detect the genetic material of the human papillomavirus.
Spencer said lower screening rates among women in their 20s may explain the slightly higher rates of cervical cancer among women in their 30s and early 40s.
When women in one of Spencer’s studies were asked why they hadn’t gotten tested recently, they generally answered: I didn’t know they needed it You may need to be screened or your health care provider may not have recommended it. Only 1% of women ages 21 to 29 said they skipped the screening test because they received the HPV vaccine.
“Clearly more patient education is needed,” said Dr. Betty Sue Bergman, chief of gynecologic oncology at Kaiser Permanente Northern California. Her health system has already sent postcards, letters and phone calls to remind women about screenings. This year, Kaiser Permanente will also start sending text messages to patients, she said.
Spencer said changes in guidelines regarding cervical cancer screening may also be confusing for women and health care providers. Until the early 2000s, most doctors examined women annually. The task force has updated the guidelines three times over the past 20 years and is reviewing them again.
Some say the increased incidence of cervical cancer among women in their 30s and 40s cannot be easily explained.
cervical tumor Growth tends to be slow, so It usually takes more than 10 years for a precancerous condition to turn into cancer, Wentzen said. He said other factors may be at play. For example, he wonders whether many women immigrating to the United States are not tested, putting them at higher risk.
And Spencer points out that testing is just the first step in saving lives. Women with abnormal screening results should undergo additional testing and, if necessary, treatment.
in Research published last year In the American Journal of Preventive Medicine, Spencer et al. found that only 73% of women with abnormal screening results received follow-up care.
“The onus is on the health care system to think about who is falling through the cracks,” Spencer said.