Pap test self-collection to break down barriers

MedTech News: Women who need to get a cervical screening test will be able to choose to self-collect a sample themselves. The self-collect option is a game changer in cervical screening and Australia is one of the first countries in the world to offer it as a choice for all screening participants.

Assistant Minister for Health and Aged Care, Ged Kearney, said “Anyone who has ever had a traditional ‘pap smear’ knows how uncomfortable and off-putting they can be. Now, women can choose to do a test themselves to detect cervical cancer.

“This do-it-yourself test is a game changer, breaking down access barriers for many people. It will mean that women who have experienced sexual violence do not have to have the invasive test, but can still be effectively screened for cervical cancer.

“Self collection  will make cervical cancer screening a lot more accessible for people of different cultural backgrounds, who may not have opted to get a traditional ‘pap smear’. It will also ensure the gender diverse community have less barriers to screening. This gives women more control over their own bodies, and makes it easier to keep safe and healthy.”

The change to the National Cervical Screening Program means that anyone aged 25-74 with a cervix, who has ever been sexually active will be able to choose to have a Cervical Screening Test either by:

• taking their own sample from their vagina, using a simple swab, or
• having a healthcare provider collect the sample using a speculum.

Both test options are free under Medicare and are accessed through a healthcare provider. There are three laboratories in Australia that currently support self-collection; VCS Pathology (VIC), Douglass Hanly Moir Pathology (NSW) and Sullivan Nicolaides Pathology (QLD).

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Pene Manolas, Cervical Screening Program Manager at Cancer Institute NSW, said the new policy has the potential to help more people prevent cervical cancer.

“We know that many people have never screened or are very overdue, and we hope the new collection method could be the encouragement they need to book in,” Ms Manolas explained.

“Self-collection can help breakdown potential barriers of pain or shame, and offer empowerment for people to screen themselves.”

The Australian Government is working with the Australian Centre for the Prevention of Cervical Cancer to develop a National Cervical Cancer Elimination Strategy. This will be a coordinated effort throughout the health system to overcome cultural and structural barriers to cervical cancer prevention programs and treatment, particularly for First Nations peoples and other under-screened populations.

The Government is also supporting Australia’s largest clinical trial, the Compass Trial, which will produce world-first evidence on the interactions between HPV vaccination and HPV-based screening. The trial will inform improvements to the National Cervical Screening Program to ensure participants continue to receive the right care.