[New strategies for screening cervical cancer; response to the Dutch College of General Practitioner's practice guideline 'Prevention and early diagnosis of cervical cancer']

Abstract

The publication of a practice guideline for primary and secondary prevention of cervical cancer by the Dutch College of General Practitioners was appropriate since the vaccination against two high-risk human papillomaviruses (hr-HPV 16 and 18) was recently included in the National Immunization Programme of the Netherlands. Despite vaccination, population-based screening for cervical neoplasia needs to be continued. Moreover, it will take over a decade before vaccination will affect the prevalence of cervical neoplasia. Short term improvement of prevention of cervical neoplasia should therefore focus on screening technology and strategy. Molecular tests based on detection of hr-HPV or DNA changes occurring early in cervical carcinogenesis might improve the efficacy of the screening, which in the Netherlands is currently done by Pap smear. In addition, the high number of women not responding on an invitation for screening might be reduced by a self-sampling approach.