The first-round results of a populationbased cohort study of HPV testing in Japanese cervical cancer screening: baseline characteristics, screening results, and referral rate / 부인종양

Objective@#In 2013, a cohort study aimed to clarify the positive and negative effects of introducing the human papillomavirus (HPV) testing for population-based cervical cancer screening has been launched in Japan. This study included four screenings during the subsequent 7-year follow-up period. We aim to describe the results of the first round of this study on cervical cancer screening here. @*Methods@#This study began in September 2013 with recruitment completed in March 2016.Women aged 30–49 years were divided into 2 groups: those who received uterine cervical cytology alone in the first year (control group), or those who received a combination of cytology and HPV testing (intervention group), based on their age. After first screening, women with positive result of cytology or positive HPV test required referral. We summarized the results of the first round of cervical cancer screening. @*Results@#Of the 25,074 women who were eligible for the study, 13,845 women (55.2%) were screened with cytology alone; 11,229 women (44.8%) received a combination of cytology and HPV testing. After screening, 407 women (2.9%) in the control group and 1,003 women (8.9%) in the intervention group required referral, respectively. Adding HPV testing increased referral rate significantly (p<0.001). @*Conclusion@#After first screening, introduction of HPV testing appears to contribute to significantly higher referral rates, suggesting that the number of colposcopies as a detailed examination may increase. These preliminary findings suggest that if HPV testing is introduced into screening, medical institutions need to be prepared for an increasing number of follow-up examinations.

National screening programs for cervical cancer in Asian countries / 부인종양

Cervical cancer is still one of the most common female cancers in Asia and the leading cause of cancer-related deaths in low- and middle-income countries. Nowadays, national screening programs for cervical cancer are widely provided in Asian countries. We reviewed the National Cancer Screening Program (NCSP) in China, India, Indonesia, Japan, Korea, and Thailand. The NCSP were established at varying times, from 1962 in Japan to 2014 in Indonesia. The primary screening method is based on cytology in all countries except for India and Indonesia. In India and Indonesia, visual inspection of the cervix with acetic acid (VIA) is mainly used as a primary screening method, and a “see and treat” strategy is applied to women with a positive VIA result. The starting age of NCSP ranges from 18 years in China to 30 years in Thailand. The screening interval is 2 years in all countries except for China and Indonesia, in which it is 3 years. Uptake rates of NCSP vary from 5.0%–59.7%. Many women in low- and middle-income countries still do not participate in NCSP. To improve uptake rates and thereby prevent more cases of cervical cancer, Asian countries should continue to promote NCSP to the public using various approaches.

Smoking prevalence and beliefs on smoking cessation among members of the Japanese Cancer Association in 2006 and 2010.

Smoking is a significant contributing factor to disease-related deaths worldwide. Members of the Japanese Cancer Association (JCA) can play a leading role in helping people to live tobacco-free through social action. In 2010, this study assessed smoking prevalence among JCA members and their attitudes toward smoking, smoking cessation, and their responsibilities. Results of the 2010 survey were compared with those of a 2006 survey. Final response rates were 60.8% in the 2006 survey and 47.4% in the 2010 survey, and the current smoking rates were 9.0% and 5.3%, respectively. Regarding concern by current smokers over smoking cessation, the percentage of smokers who were ready to quit smoking within the next month increased from 4.9% to 6.3% between 2006 and 2010. Most JCA members agreed with antismoking actions such as smoking bans in all workplaces, public places, or while walking in the street, regulation restricting the sale and distribution of tobacco to children, tobacco education at school, use of tobacco tax for health, provision of information on tobacco, and smoking cessation support. Approximately 30% of responders disagreed on actions to raise the price of tobacco, regulations restricting the sale of tobacco, health warnings on tobacco packaging, bans on tobacco advertisement, and antismoking campaigns. Barriers to smoking cessation interventions identified were physician's time required to provide interventions, resistance of patients to smoking cessation advice, and lack of education on tobacco control. Not only antismoking actions but also support of smokers by health professionals through adequate education on smoking cessation treatment is needed in the future.