in the 1940s, the mortality rate from cervical cancer in some populations has dropped by 84%. In other parts, however these effects have yet to filter to. In developing countries where medical infrastructure cannot support expensive or complicated testing, only about 5% of the women have ever had a Pap test. As a result cervical cancer remains one of the leading causes of death.

A new screening test, which is less expensive and can be performed in areas without sophisticated resources, must be developed. Researchers have focused on the Shanxi province in China where cervical cancer rates are 20-30 times higher than in the United States and conventional Pap tests are difficult or impossible to obtain.

2100 Chinese women between the ages of 35 and 45 were screened for whom the risk of cervical dysplasia is the highest. 6 different screening tools were investigated:

-The ThinPrep Pap test.
-Two tests for detecting evidence of infection with human papilloma virus or HPV, which is related to virtually all cases of cervical cancer. A self-test taken by the women themselves and that taken by doctors.
-Nonmagnified visual inspection of the cervix.
-Fluorescence spectroscopy, which uses a laser beam to differentiate normal from abnormal tissue.
-Colposcopic examinations (magnified visualization)

Biopsies were also performed to compare the accuracy against these benchmarks.

Once data has been analyzed, researchers hope to determine which tests or combinations of tests will be most effective in different parts of the world, depending on human and financial resources.

n) The return of the virus- (Bombay Times-05/05/00)

The human papilloma virus, which causes most of the world’s cervical cancer, also appears to cause some oral cancer, mostly tumors found in the tonsils. These tumors are, however, much less deadly than other cancers of the Head and Neck that are caused by the usual culprits, smoking or alcohol.

o) Cervical Cancer Education Website Launched (Reuters Health- 07/01/00)

The first Internet-based cervical cancer public education campaign was launched on 6th. The goal of the campaign is to reach 5 million women this month, designated Cervical Cancer Month, via the website, http://www.cervicalcancercampaign.org/. The site's launch was announced during a live web cast organized by the American Medical Women's Association, America Online, and the National Cervical Cancer Public Education Campaign.

Spokespersons with the campaign noted that each year 500,000 women are diagnosed with the cancer worldwide. The purpose of the website is to educate women as to the importance of regular Pap smear screening in the early detection of cervical cancer. The site also includes information about the link between the sexually transmitted disease human papillomavirus (HPV) and cervical cancer and the tests that are now available to test for HPV. Most cases of cervical cancer are linked to HPV infection.

"Cervical cancer is preventable,'' Dr. Angel Houghton of Houston, Texas, and the American Women's Medical Association told reporters. "Unclear results on Pap smear can be confirmed with HPV testing,'' she added. "No women need die from this disease. It is curable if caught early,'' Houghton asserted.

p) Study backs alternative to pap tests - (TOI-06/01/00)

A study done in South Africa indicates that a self-test using a vaginal swab may provide an alternative to the Pap test in the battle against cervical cancer. The chief author of the study said that a single Pap smear misses about 40% of cervical disease. The self-collected sample is used to detect the presence of Human Papilloma Virus (HPV), which has been linked to the incidence of cervical cancer. It was found that the sensitivity of HPV DNA testing was equivalent to that of a Pap test at detecting high-grade cervical cancer. However, the HPV DNA tests also had higher rates of false positive results than Pap smears performed in a clinic.

q) One stop screening for cervical cancer successful (Reuters Health-16/12/99) Source-Cancer 1999:86:2659-2667

In California, cervica

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