In the News

by Deborah Sweitzer, The Times-Standard, 1/17/07

Free Pap tests offered

January is National Cervical Cancer Awareness Month.

For the third year in a row, the Open Door Community Health Centers will provide free Pap smears for the women of Humboldt and Del Norte Counties during the week of Jan. 22 through 26. These free Pap tests are offered to all women, regardless of insurance, income, or citizenship status. No one will be turned away.

With proper screening, cervical cancer is preventable. We now know the cause of cervical cancer is a virus, the Human Papilloma Virus (HPV), which is sexually transmitted. HPV is the most common sexually transmitted infection in the United States, with approximately 20 million Americans currently infected. Each year an additional 6.2 million people are newly infected, and half of those infected are between the ages of 15 and 24. There is difficulty detecting infections because most have no symptoms. The only way to monitor or detect HPV is with Pap testing. Pap smear testing should start three years after becoming sexually active and no later than age 21. Over half of sexually active women and men are infected with HPV at some point in their lives. Ninety percent of women with HPV have infections that will go away on their own and cause no health problems. The 10 percent of women with persistent infections are at increased risk for cervical cancer. Latina women have the highest risk of developing cervical cancer -- about twice as high as other women.

Condom use reduces the risk of infection with all sexually transmitted diseases. This is also the case with the HPV infection. In June there was an exciting breakthrough as the first vaccine to prevent cervical cancer was approved. The vaccine is now available for females aged 11 to 26, though it is safe to give girls as young as 9 years old. The HPV vaccine is a three shot series given over six months. The vaccine should be given before a girl becomes sexually active. It can also be given to women who have had abnormal Pap smears or genital warts; however, the vaccine may not benefit the existing infection. The vaccine targets the two types of HPV that cause 70 percent of cervical cancers, and the two types that cause 90 percent of genital warts. The cost is approximately $160 per dose, but it may be covered by state and federal vaccine programs. The HPV vaccine does not replace annual Pap smears or routine condom use to help reduce the risk of HPV infection.

For more information about the HPV vaccine, contact your local health care provider, community health center or public health department. For more information on free Pap testing, call the Humboldt Community Breast Health Project at 825-8345.

Deborah Sweitzer is a women's health care physician assistant.