Two-stage cervical cancer screening: an alternative for resource-poor settings.
OBJECTIVE
We sought to introduce 2-stage cervical cancer screening in which 2 screening tests are performed sequentially (the second test is performed only if the first result is positive), followed by treatment if both test results are abnormal.


METHODS
A total of 1423 women from Cape Town, South Africa, were screened by direct visual inspection, human papillomavirus deoxyribonucleic acid testing, cytologic testing, and cervicography. If an abnormality was identified with any test, women were referred for colposcopy.


RESULTS
Direct visual inspection, cytologic testing, human papillomavirus deoxyribonucleic acid testing, and cervicography, when used alone, identified 24, 26, 23, and 23 cases of disease (high-grade squamous intraepithelial lesion or cancer) per 1000 women, respectively, and would classify 182, 71, 137, and 112 women without disease as having abnormal results. Two-stage screening with direct visual inspection first, followed by cytologic testing, human papillomavirus deoxyribonucleic acid testing, or cervicography, would detect 18, 16, and 18 cases per 1000 women, respectively, and would substantially reduce the number of women without disease who were classified as having abnormal results.


CONCLUSIONS
Two-stage screening for cervical cancer provides an attractive alternative to conventional screening for low-resource settings.
Denny
L
L
Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, University of Cape Town, South Africa.
Kuhn
L
L
Risi
L
L
Richart
R M
RM
Pollack
A
A
Lorincz
A
A
Kostecki
F
F
Wright
T C
TC
D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D002278:Carcinoma in Situ / Q000175:diagnosis*; D002294:Carcinoma, Squamous Cell / Q000175:diagnosis*; D002584:Cervix Uteri / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000473:pathology; D004279:DNA, Viral / Q000032:analysis; D005260:Female; D006295:Health Resources; D006801:Humans; D008403:Mass Screening / Q000379:methods*; D008875:Middle Aged; D027383:Papillomaviridae / Q000235:genetics; D011859:Radiography; D002583:Uterine Cervical Neoplasms / Q000175:diagnosis*; D014626:Vaginal Smears
D004279:DNA, Viral