title: Application of a new liquid-based procedure (TACAS) for the screening of cervical cancer: a preliminary study.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To evaluate the usefulness of a new liquid-based cytological procedure in a population screening program for cervix cancer.
  
  
  METHODS
  Subjects were 1,000 women who underwent primary screening at the Kanagawa Health Service Association. The cytological specimens obtained by either cotton stick and Cytobrush® or Cervex-Brush® were processed using the Thinlayer Advanced Cytology Assay System (TACAS™), following the manufacturer's instructions.
  
  
  RESULTS
  (1) Cells were evenly distributed on specimens and stained evenly; (2) shrinkage of cells was 5% based on measurement of the nuclear diameters of granulocytes in comparison with those of the conventional procedure; (3) incidences of cells that occupied the whole area, 1/20≤, 1/4≤, 1/4> of the observation fields were 58.8, 26.2, 12.0 and 3.0%, respectively; (4) number of the squamous cells in cases with 1/4> was <5,000, in which specimen cells were correctly obtained from the squamocolumnar junction except in 3 cases (0.3%); (5) bleeding at cellular sampling was 5%, but did not disturb cell analysis; (6) inflammation caused by organisms was easily diagnosed; (7) detection rate of abnormal cytology was 4.3%, including ASC-US in 2.8% and ASC-H in 0.1%.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  TACAS is a feasible and useful cytological procedure.
authors.affiliation: Department of Cancer Detection for Females, Kanagawa Health Service Association, Yokohama, Japan. Kuramoto@yobouigaku-kanagawa.or.jp
authors.forename: Hiroyuki
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Kuramoto
authors.forename: Yoshiko
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Iwami
authors.forename: Naoko
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Sugimoto
authors.forename: Chizuyo
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Kato
authors.forename: Takashi
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Sugahara
authors.forename: Manichi
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Iida
mesh_terms: D003127:Colposcopy; D003581:Cytodiagnosis / Q000379:methods; D055088:Early Detection of Cancer / Q000379:methods*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008875:Middle Aged; D002578:Uterine Cervical Dysplasia / Q000175:diagnosis; D002583:Uterine Cervical Neoplasms / Q000175:diagnosis*