The NHS is trialling at-home smear tests for women who hate them
Far too many women are avoiding smear tests because they're embarrassed about what the procedure entails. And for that reason, the NHS is trialling at-home cervical screenings in areas where there are low attendance rates.
More than 31,000 women are being given kits to test for HPV - the virus that's known to be the primary cause of cervical cancer - in the comfort of their own home. Initially, DIY cervical screening tests will be sent in the post to women aged between 25-64 who are 15 months overdue for a check, in the London Boroughs of Barnet, Camden, Islington, Newham and Tower Hamlets.
In research conducted by Jo's Cervical Cancer Trust in 2019, 81% of women surveyed said they either delayed or didn't go to their cervical screenings because they were embarrassed about the procedure. And this is concerning, because there really shouldn't be anything to be embarrassed about. The doctors and nurses doing the screenings have all seen thousands of other vaginas in their careers so far, and during the forty-five seconds they spend near yours, they're not going to be paying attention to its external aesthetic.
But just because we shouldn't feel embarrassed about such an important health check, doesn't mean that people don't. And that's why a DIY testing kit could be just the option many women need.
Speaking in 2019 to the Commons Public Accounts Committee, Professor Sir Mike Richards, who was leading a review of cancer screening, announced the impending trial, which is now about to be put in action. Pointing to the Netherlands, where at-home HPV tests are already rolled out and triggered a boost in the number of women undergoing screenings, Richards said the scheme showed "great promise".
"We may get to a different segment of the population by offering HPV self-sampling sets through the post," he said. And he's right, because it could be an effective (and far more private) way for women to find out if they're at risk of developing cervical cancer in the near future.
Here's why it could work: smear tests in the UK changed recently so they're now 'HPV primary screenings'. HPV - or human papilloma virus - is a common virus that causes 99.7% of all cervical cancers. It's sexually transmitted, but is exceptionally common and most people won't even know they have it. The chance of contracting HPV across your lifetime is extremely high, with around 8 out of 10 people becoming infected with it at some point in their lives.
Because HPV causes nearly all incidences of cervical cancer, it makes sense to test women for HPV first. If they've got one of 13 strains of the virus that is known to potentially cause cervical cancer, then they're a priority for having their cervix monitored to ensure there's no evidence of pre-cancer. If they don't have HPV, it would be almost impossible for them to develop cervical cancer.
With me so far? NHS-run, clinic-based smear tests across the UK have gradually been adapted to follow this new process, and while the procedure itself hasn't changed - a speculum is still inserted into the vagina, with a swab taking samples of cervical cells - the change comes when the sample is sent off for testing. Instead of checking the cervical cells on the swab for changes (abnormalities), labs now test samples for HPV first instead.
You might be wondering why we actually need these screenings and at-home swabs in the first place, and the only thing to be said about that is that it could literally save your life.
The NHS' cervical screening programme saves 5,000 lives every year in the UK and provides the best protection against cervical cancer, protecting against 75% of cervical cancers. With more than 3,000 women diagnosed with the disease each year in the UK - and with cervical cancer being the most common cancer in women aged 35 and under - it's so, so important to protect your health in this way.
Don't let embarrassment stop you - whether that means taking a 'grin and bear it' approach and just going to your smear test, or if it means investing in an at-home kit you can do in private.
Follow Cat on Twitter.
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