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Preferences for Human Papillomavirus Testing with Routine Cervical Cancer Screening in Diverse Older Women

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Abstract

Background

Human papillomavirus (HPV) testing is increasingly being used to determine the optimal cervical cancer screening interval in older women. Little is known about women’s attitudes toward HPV testing or how these attitudes may influence medical discussions about cervical cancer screening.

Methods

Preferences for HPV and concomitant Papanicolaou (Pap) testing were assessed through in-person interviews with diverse women aged 50 to 80 years recruited from community and university-based practices.

Results

Eight hundred and sixty-five women (257 White, 87 African American, 149 Latina, and 372 Asian) were interviewed. Approximately 60% of participants wanted to be tested for HPV and another 15% would undergo testing if recommended by their physician. Among those wanting HPV testing, 94% would want more frequent than annual Pap tests if they had a positive HPV test and a normal Pap test. Two thirds of those under age 65 would be willing to switch to triennial Pap testing, and half of those aged 65 and older would be willing to discontinue Pap testing, if they had a negative HPV test and normal Pap test. Preferences for testing varied by ethnicity, age, place of birth, and cancer history.

Conclusions

The majority of older women were willing to use HPV testing to make decisions about frequency and duration of cervical cancer screening, but up to one third would want at least annual, ongoing screening regardless of HPV test results. Efforts should be made to ensure that HPV testing is used to reinforce appropriate utilization of screening tests.

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Acknowledgments

This study was supported by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (5P01 HS10856) for an Excellence Center to Eliminate Ethnic/Racial Disparities (EXCEED) and by grant P30-AG15272 under the Resource Centers for Minority Aging Research program by the National Institute on Aging, the National Institute of Nursing Research, and the National Center on Minority Health and Health Disparities, National Institutes of Health. Dr. Huang’s research efforts are further supported by Grant Number KL2RR024130 from the National Center for Research Resources, a component of the National Institutes of Health Clinical and Translational Science Award for Medical Research.

Conflict of Interest

None disclosed.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Division of General Internal Medicine, Department of Medicine, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA

    Alison J. Huang MD, MPhil, Eliseo J. Pérez-Stable MD, Sue E. Kim PhD, Celia P. Kaplan DrPH, MA & Judith M. E. Walsh MD, MPH

  2. Medical Effectiveness Research Center for Diverse Populations, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA

    Alison J. Huang MD, MPhil, Eliseo J. Pérez-Stable MD, Sue E. Kim PhD, Sabrina T. Wong RN, PhD, Celia P. Kaplan DrPH, MA, Judith M. E. Walsh MD, MPH & George F. Sawaya MD

  3. University of British Columbia School of Nursing, Vancouver, BC, Canada

    Sabrina T. Wong RN, PhD

  4. Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology, and Reproductive Sciences, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA

    A. Yuri Iwaoka-Scott MA & George F. Sawaya MD

  5. University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA

    Eliseo J. Pérez-Stable MD

Authors
  1. Alison J. Huang MD, MPhil
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  2. Eliseo J. Pérez-Stable MD
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  3. Sue E. Kim PhD
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  4. Sabrina T. Wong RN, PhD
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  5. Celia P. Kaplan DrPH, MA
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  6. Judith M. E. Walsh MD, MPH
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  7. A. Yuri Iwaoka-Scott MA
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  8. George F. Sawaya MD
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Eliseo J. Pérez-Stable MD.

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Huang, A.J., Pérez-Stable, E.J., Kim, S.E. et al. Preferences for Human Papillomavirus Testing with Routine Cervical Cancer Screening in Diverse Older Women. J GEN INTERN MED 23, 1324–1329 (2008). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11606-008-0633-x

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11606-008-0633-x

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