Vaccine won't cover all the cancer cases
As an internist and patient empowerment expert, I wanted to thank
The Sun for educating readers about the pending vaccines for human papilloma virus (HPV) and the continued need for screening
for cervical cancer ("HPV vaccine nearing approval," May 11).
However, I feel it’s important to educate women about all their screening
options, because the Pap smear alone is not enough.
As The Sun's article correctly notes, the vaccine protects against
only the 70 percent of cervical cancer cases caused by two strains of HPV,
which leaves 30 percent of these cases out of reach. Thus for the foreseeable
future, millions of women will have to look elsewhere for protection.
And even though the Pap smear does detect precancerous cells,
multiple studies have shown that the Pap smear alone isn't foolproof.
In fact, the Pap smear test is inaccurate up to 50 percent of the
time.
However, by administering an HPV test along with the Pap smear to
women age 30 and older (those most likely to get a form of HPV that puts them
at high risk for cervical cancer), screening accuracy
can be improved to nearly 100 percent.
Dr. Marie Savard
Wynnewood,
The writer is a clinical associate professor of internal medicine
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