Cervical cancer screening and HPV testing in Latin America

To mark Cervical Cancer Awareness Month, the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) is highlighting research projects to tackle the global burden of this cancer type. The ESTAMPA study is an IARC-led international research project in Latin America to evaluate approaches to organized cervical screening based on human papillomavirus (HPV) testing and to reduce cervical cancer mortality in the region.

Cervical screening with cytology has been practised in Latin America for decades, but an effective cervical cancer prevention programme requires frequent smears and follow-up visits, and this model is unsuited to women with limited access to care. Cervical screening through HPV testing, which requires less frequent testing, has been introduced in some countries as an alternative.

The ESTAMPA study aims to evaluate different techniques and approaches for the triage of women who test positive for carcinogenic HPV types, and to identify those who are at high risk of having or developing precancerous lesions that, if left untreated, can progress to cervical cancer. In addition, the ESTAMPA study will serve as the initial research platform to define the best strategies to implement and scale up cervical screening through HPV testing in Latin America.

Although infection with HPV is very common, most HPV infections resolve spontaneously and not all women who test positive for HPV are at high risk of developing cervical cancer. Effective triage avoids generating unnecessary anxiety among women who test positive for HPV but are not at risk of disease, and avoids overburdening health-care services with HPV-positive women who present to diagnostic services but do not, in fact, have cervical cancer.

Initial evaluations have shown that the existing approaches are not yet adequate to optimize cervical cancer screening through HPV testing. However, promising novel technologies, which are still being evaluated, may accelerate pathways towards cervical cancer elimination, not only in Latin America but worldwide.

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Visit the Cervical Cancer Awareness Month 2022 webpage