Soon Urine Tests Will Replace Pap Smears to Screen Cervical Cancer

A simple urine test can help screen Human papillomavirus or HPV in women, according to a study.

Recently British and Spanish experts examined the accuracy of the current diagnosis tools for HPV and cervical cancer. They found urine tests effective in screening the deadly virus and believe it can replace the pap smear test. The research used data from 14 published studies involving over 1,400 participants who were sexually active. The urine tests were far more sensitive in identifying positives correctly about 87 percent of the times and negatives for 94 percent. The method had 73 and 98 percent accuracy rates in detecting high risk strains of HPV and strains with cervical cancer, respectively.

"The detection of HPV in urine is non-invasive, easily accessible and acceptable to women, and a test with these qualities could considerably increase uptake," write the authors in the study, reports Reuters.

According to the data by the World Health Organization, the cervical cancer causing virus annually affects nearly 266,000 women around the world. Majority of death rates and disease incidence prevails in poor and economically backward countries that have limited access to care, vaccination and early screening techniques.

In the recent times, many federal and health regulatory agencies in the U.S. have urged doctor, parents and care givers to ensure young girls of prepubescent age are vaccinated before they become sexually active. Pharmaceutical giants like Merck and Glaxo Smith Kline have also introduced national immunization programs.

The conventional pap smear test involves insertion of a device called speculum inside the vagina to scrap out some cells off the cervix for examination. The new method is more continent and saves women from the discomfort of the test. The researchers say this may encourage more women to take tests regularly. In addition, they add, "Self sampling (urine testing) might even be beneficial and cost effective for all women who are eligible for screening", reports Reuters.

More information is available online in the British Medical Journal.