Pap tests can be beneficial for the prevention of cervical cancer in older women -
A new study from the University of Illinois confirms a link between Pap screenings and a lower risk of developing cervical cancer in women over 65. However, most US health guidelines discourage women in this age group receive screenings unless they have risk factors preexisting.
new findings are published in the journal Gynecologic Oncology .
"Some studies suggest that Pap smears are not needed in the elderly, while others show that there is an advantage in the over 65 age group," said Karin Rosenblatt, an epidemiologist cancer and professor of kinesiology and community health at Illinois. "There was a big debate about it."
early research on the Pap test recommended not not test women over 50 years the suggested age limit for screening has increased in recent years as the factors of the disease and the risks are better understood.
"Although the incidence cervical cancer is greater among women aged adults under 65, over 65 tend to be cases of death from the disease, "said Rosenblatt.
When detected early - often via a Pap test -. premalignant tissue of cervical cancer can be removed or treated so that it does not progress to malignancy
Rosenblatt assessed whether Pap tests reduce the risk of cervical cancer, especially in women over 65 years, she and her team looked at Medicare billing data from 1991 to 1999 and extracts information on more than 10 women who were recently diagnosed with cervical cancer. The researchers compared their background screening of those with more than 10,000 patients witnesses who had no diagnosis of cancer and were matched on age and geographic location. The team determined that the patients had received a Pap test two to seven years before diagnosis. The results were adjusted for race and income in areas where subjects lived.
"We found that the group of newly diagnosed cancer of the cervix were 36 percent less likely to have had a Pap test, compared to the control group," says Rosenblatt. "Reducing risk was 52 percent after the inclusion of women in the control group who may have had a hysterectomy before age 65. both results were statistically significant. "
These results suggest that Pap tests can be beneficial for the prevention of malignant cervical cancer in women over 65 years, she said.
the possibility of having a Pap test should be weighed against the potential complications of a psychological pre diagnosis -malignes, other concomitant diseases or handicaps and general life expectancy, Rosenblatt said.
"It is also a further cost-benefit analysis to achieve the projections in older women," she said . Medicare covered a Pap test every three years at the time of the study and now covers a Pap test every 2 years, she said.
"There should be further study of the advantages and risks of doing Pap smear in the elderly," Rosenblatt said future studies should comprehensively assess the Pap test in elderly women and specifically to inform policy recommendations of health, she said.
EmoticonEmoticon