Hong Kong Med J 2006;12(Suppl 2):S15-8
The pattern of cervical cancer screening in Hong Kong
P Adab, SM McGhee, J Yanova, LC Wong, CM Wong, AJ Hedley
Department of Community Medicine, The University of Hong Kong
1. Cervical cancer is an important health problem in Hong Kong.
2. A large proportion (56%) of women in Hong Kong do not attend cervical cancer screening.
3. Those who are being screened have lower risk and are screened more frequently than necessary.
4. The current system is inadequate, inequitable, wastes resources and may result in harm due to over-screening low-risk respondents.
5. Introduction of an organised screening programme should improve effectiveness and efficiency.
6. To balance effectiveness and efficiency, a 4- to 6-yearly screening interval with target coverage of 80% is a reasonable option.
7. To be effective, an organised programme should have high coverage of target groups as its main aim.
8. Introducing such a programme would require commitment to adequate long-term resources, and development of agreed policies for screening methods, programme organisation, and monitoring.
2. A large proportion (56%) of women in Hong Kong do not attend cervical cancer screening.
3. Those who are being screened have lower risk and are screened more frequently than necessary.
4. The current system is inadequate, inequitable, wastes resources and may result in harm due to over-screening low-risk respondents.
5. Introduction of an organised screening programme should improve effectiveness and efficiency.
6. To balance effectiveness and efficiency, a 4- to 6-yearly screening interval with target coverage of 80% is a reasonable option.
7. To be effective, an organised programme should have high coverage of target groups as its main aim.
8. Introducing such a programme would require commitment to adequate long-term resources, and development of agreed policies for screening methods, programme organisation, and monitoring.