In Other Journals

Screening for cervical cancer should continue in older women despite previous negative smear results, say Dutch researchers. In the study, over 200 000 women aged 45–54 years and over 400 000 women aged 30–44 years were followed for 10 years after their third consecutive negative smear result. Both groups had a similar rate of screening after the last negative result. Unlike previous studies, the researchers used invasive cervical cancer as an endpoint. The cumulative incidence of cervical cancer was similar in both groups after 10 years. The authors conclude that age is not a good discriminator for early cessation of cervical cancer screening.