Cervical cancer screening uptake, adherence poor for young women

(HealthDay)—A substantial proportion of women who were not vaccinated for human papillomavirus (HPV) never received cervical cancer screening or were not up to date on screening recommendations in 2019, according to a research letter published online Oct. 26 in JAMA Network Open.

Kalyani Sonawane, Ph.D., from UTHealth School of Public Health in Houston, and colleagues used data from the 2019 National Health Interview Survey to examine cervical cancer screening uptake and adherence among U.S. women. The analysis included 1,872 women aged 21 to 29 years and 2,637 women aged 30 to 39 years.

The researchers found that among 21- to 29-year-old women, 24.6 percent never underwent cervical cancer screening and 29.1 percent did not adhere to screening recommendations versus 11.5 and 17.5 percent, respectively, among 30- to 39-year-old women. Among both age groups, a higher proportion of women who were not vaccinated for HPV never received cervical cancer screening and were not adherent to recommendations compared with women who were vaccinated for HPV.

"Poor cervical cancer screening uptake among U.S. women who are not vaccinated for HPV is a major public health concern," the authors write. "Vigorous efforts are needed to reduce existing screening disparities."

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