Cancer risk slashed

09 October 2015 - 02:08 By Katharine Child

South African scientists have discovered quickly how to detect the presence of the human papilloma virus in women, which puts them at risk of cervical cancer. Cervical cancer, although preventable, is the biggest cancer killer of women in this country.Pap smears are used to screen for cervical cancer but in some districts only 28% of the women who should be tested can be.Cindy Firnhaber, an HIV expert at NGO Right to Care, decided to see if the Gene Xpert machine, which detects TB in only two hours, could also be used to test for the HPV virus.She discovered that the machinecan detect the virus in an hour.UCT professor Anna-Lise Williamson said there would be an increase in cervical cancer in South Africa because women with HIV are five times more likely to develop it."The bigger picture is that doctors are trying to work out how to screen for cervical cancer and how to treat or prevent it, so we don't have a huge increase in cases," said Williamson.Up to two-thirds of women in some areas whose pap smear shows they have cancerous or precancerous cells do not return to the hospital for their results, said Williamson.So the faster the test results are available the better - and if the test takes only an hour the women can wait for the result.Williamson said trials were being run to determine whether cauterising the top layer of the cervical cells in high-risk women infected with HPV was effective in preventing cancer developing.Firnhaber said no woman should have cervical cancer: "We have the resources to screen for it but we are not doing it."We need to apply our minds to preventing disease - it's not rocket science," she said...

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