Assessing the impact of new cervical cancer screening guidelines.

With more than 12,000 women diagnosed with invasive cervical cancer annually in the United States, the importance of screening certain patient populations for human papillomavirus (HPV)—the main cause of cervical cancer—has become a key topic of discussion in women’s health. Approximately two-thirds of all cervical cancer cases are caused by the two highest-risk HPV genotypes, HPV 16 and HPV 18. Yet, women who should receive screening for high-risk HPV in addition to Pap cytology to assess their risk for cervical cancer often do not. While the global impact of Pap cytology screening in women’s health cannot be overstated, up to one-third of cervical cancers occur in appropriately screened women with normal Pap cytology results. 1,2