Too many women are not getting screened for cervical cancer - this method helps avoid the dreaded test
Cervical cancer could be eradicated. Yet, in France, more than 3,000 cases are diagnosed each year, and 1,100 people die from it. These are lives that could be saved if more people were vaccinated against papillomaviruses (which cause almost all cervical cancers) and were screened regularly. Between 2020 and 2022, the coverage rate for organized cervical cancer screening was only 59% in France, well below the 75% recommended in Europe, according to Public Health France . The National Cancer Institute confirms that "more than 40% of women affected by screening do not get it, or do not get it regularly."
There are many reasons why so many women do not get this screening done, or do not get it done enough: difficulties finding a healthcare professional, a history of sexual or gynecological violence, disability, fear, etc. For these women, there is an alternative to the "classic" smear test: a vaginal self-sample. Instead of going to a healthcare professional, who will insert a speculum and take a sample from the cervix, the self-test allows you to take a sample yourself, at home, from the vagina.
The two methods are very similar: they can detect the presence of high-risk human papillomavirus (HPV). Several studies have concluded that self-testing is just as effective as cervical smears. But the latter should be preferred for several reasons. If the self-test results are positive, a traditional smear test will necessarily have to be performed. "You can't do everything with a self-test. You can only look for HPV," explains Dr. Anne Sophie Le Duc-Banaszuk, coordinating physician at the Pays de la Loire cancer screening center. Indeed, a cervical swab will detect the presence of HPV, but it alone will also analyze whether the cells are normal or not. This analysis is essential, especially before the age of 30: self-sampling cannot therefore be performed before this age.
Also, the cervical smear is part of an important consultation with a healthcare professional, who will also perform a breast palpation and a vaginal examination. "The goal is for women to get checked," insists Dr. Le Duc Banaszuk. Screening will thus be an opportunity to detect the possible presence of high-risk papillomavirus, as well as any other gynecological diseases. It is also a time when various topics can be discussed, such as contraception and prevention.
Self-testing should therefore "remain complementary" and be reserved for certain specific cases: a history of violence, physical disability, or vaginismus, which make screening with the insertion of a speculum difficult or even impossible. Self-testing is therefore an "interesting" alternative to traditional screening to "target women who do not do it" or not often enough, the specialist believes.
L'Internaute
