Screening for cervical cancer
CMAJ 1998;158:302
Re: "Cervical cancer: screening hard-to-reach groups" (CMAJ 1997;157[5]:543-5 [full text / résumé]), by Dr. Eva Grunfeld
In response to: E.A. Clarke
I thank Dr. Clark for reiterating the points I made in the editorial:
- certain high-risk subgroups of women are underscreened;
- special strategies are needed to engage these women in screening;
- primary care practitioners are important for the success of a screening program; and
- formal screening programs provide quality assurance and efficient systems for gathering and collating data not possible with ad hoc screening.
It was encouraging to read of the work of the CCPN and the special efforts that will be made to screen hard-to-reach groups of women.
The suggestion that my reference to the article by Hislop and associates1 is misleading is itself misleading. The points still stand that rates of death from cervical cancer are higher among native women and that culturally sensitive initiatives are needed to engage these women in cervical cancer screening programs.
Eva Grunfeld, MD, DPhil
Ottawa Regional Cancer Centre
Ottawa, Ont.
Reference
- Hislop TG, Clarke HF, Deschamps M, Joseph R, Band PR, Smith J, et al. Cervical cytology screening: How can we improve rates among First Nations women in urban British Columbia? Can Fam Physician 1996;42:1701-8.
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