Improvements To Cervical Cancer Care, UK
And more are getting the results of their test back quickly and have faster access to any follow-up they need.
The percentage of inadequate samples for women aged 25-64 fell for the second year running - from 7.2 per cent in 2005/06 to the lowest figure ever recorded, 4.7 per cent in 2006/07.
Inadequate results are those where the test has to be repeated as the first cannot be read due to blood or other material being present in the sample.
However, analysis of data from the NHS Cervical Screening Programme reveals that the introduction of liquid-based cytology (LBC) to replace conventional pap smear tests is significantly reducing the number of inadequate tests.
As well as the need for fewer repeat tests, results of tests were available sooner. Some 48 per cent were available within four weeks and 74 per cent within six weeks, compared to 32 per cent and 56 per cent respectively in 2005/06.
Access to colposcopy was also faster. The number of those being seen within two weeks increased to 17 per cent from 15 per cent the previous year. The number of those being seen within four weeks increased to 49 per cent from 43 per cent the previous year. Of those with severe or invasive carcinoma, 84 per cent were referred within two weeks (75 per cent the previous year). For glandular neoplasia, 63 per cent were referred within two weeks compared to 61 per cent the previous year.
The full report Cervical Screening Programme, England 2006-07 is here.
1. The Information Centre (The IC) is England's authoritative, independent source of health and social care information. It works with more than 300 health and social care providers nationwide to provide the facts and figures that help the NHS and social services run effectively. Its role is to collect data, analyse it and convert it into useful information which helps providers improve their services and supports academics, researcher, regulators and policymakers in their work.
The IC also produces a wide range of statistical publications each year across a number of areas including: primary care, health and lifestyles, screening, hospital care, population and geography, social care and workforce and pay statistics.
2. Liquid based cytology (LBC) is a new way of preparing cervical samples for examination in the laboratory. The sample is collected in a similar way to the traditional pap smear, however rather than smearing the sample onto a microscope slide, a brush is used to collect cells and transfer them to preservative fluid. The sample is sent to the laboratory where it is spun and treated to remove obscuring material, for example mucus or pus and a random sample of the remaining cells is taken. A thin layer of cells is deposited onto a slide. The slide is then examined in the usual way under a microscope by a cytologist.
3. LBC was adopted in England in 2003 after the National Institute of Clinical Excellence recommended that the traditional pap smear test, which had been used by the NHS since 1989, should be replaced. The implementation of LBC is on track and will be completed by October 2008.Traditional screening remains highly effective and saves over 4,500 lives every year in England.
4. The NHS Cervical Screening Programme invites all women aged 25 to 64 for regular cervical screening, every three years for those aged 25 to 49 and every five years for those aged 50 to 64.
5. According to research by Julian Pet et al, published in The Lancet (Vol.364: 249-56) on 16 July 2004, up to 4,500 deaths are being prevented each year in England by the NHS Cervical Screening Programme.
6. Colposcopy shows the cervix in detail using a colposcope. The colposcope acts like a magnifying glass so that the doctor or nurse can see the whole cervix in more detail.
7. Glandular neoplasia is when a smear test detects changes in the glandular cells of the cervical canal. These cells are different from the skin cells found on the cervix itself and once they begin to change, they are unlikely to go back to normal on their own. If left untreated, glandular cells may develop into a cancer called adenocarcinoma (glandular cancer).
http://www.ic.nhs.uk
Îmbunãtãþirile Pentru a cancerului de col uterin Îngrijire, Marea Britanie - Improvements To Cervical Cancer Care, UK - articole medicale engleza - startsanatate