Cervical cancer resource collection
To mark Cervical Cancer Prevention Week, we have brought together a selection of resources from across our journals for you to read to keep your practice up to date
This week – 22-28 January – is Cervical Cancer Prevention Week. More than 3,200 women are diagnosed with cervical cancer and 890 women lose their lives to the disease every year. Around 5 million UK women are invited to cervical screening each year, yet one in four do not attend.
RCNi has a wide range of resources available to help nurses understand the barriers to cervical screening uptake. To mark the awareness event, we have hand-picked a selection of articles from Nursing Standard and specialist journals Primary Health Care and Cancer Nursing Practice for you to read.
What you can do
Help raise awareness of our content by sharing this article using the weblink rcni.com/cervical-cancer and the hashtag #SmearForSmear.
Evidence & practice
The evolution of the NHS cervical screening programme
The NHS Cervical Screening Programme continues to make improvements in response to scientific research and technical advances. This article details the history of change in the programme and the latest significant advances, including human papillomavirus primary screening and the opportunities this will provide for cervical screening in the future.
Policy briefing
Cervical screening
Read our policy briefing on new guidance from Public Health England on the importance of practice nurses educating women about cervical screening.
Clinical update
Your essential guide to the latest guidelines on cervical cancer
In the UK in 2013 there were around 3,200 new cases of cervical cancer. It is the 12th most common cancer in UK women, resulting in 890 deaths in 2014.
Comment
Viv Bennett: Improving cervical screening uptake would save lives
With the uptake rate of cervical cancer screening at a 20-year low, nurses need to help women understand the importance of screening and its crucial role in preventing death from cervical cancer, says Public Health England chief nurse Viv Bennett.
Gill Burgess: Decline in cervical cancer screening uptake is risking lives
Figures showing a further drop in screening coverage in England make increased diagnoses and mortality a real threat, says helpline coordinator of a cervical cancer charity Gill Burgess.
Journal Scan
Many women ‘unaware’ of cervical screening programme
More than a quarter of women who have not had a smear test may not know about the cervical screening programme, according to a study.
Risk of dying from cervical cancer higher than previously thought
A new analysis of cervical cancer mortality rates has revealed that the risk of dying from the disease is higher than previously thought, with black women most at risk.
HPV vaccine reduces cervical pre-cancers in young women
Screening guidelines and practices, which are undertaken as part of the overall cervical cancer prevention programme, may need to be reviewed as the population of women participating in human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccination increases.
Extending cervical screening beyond 5 years safe for some women
Extending the cervical cancer screening interval beyond 5 years for women aged 40 and over who test negative for human papilloma virus (HPV) is safe, say researchers.
A cluster randomised trial of strategies to increase cervical screening uptake at first invitation
There has been an increase in the incidence of cervical cancer in women under 35, and a decrease in young women taking up cervical screening invitations.
News archive
Practice nurses key to reversing cervical screening downturn
Practice nurses and GPs have a key role to play in educating women about cervical screening and tackling falling attendances, according to Public Health England guidance.
Find out more
Find out more about Cervical Cancer Prevention Week from Jo’s Cervical Cancer Trust, the UK’s only dedicated charity offering support and information to women of all ages and their loved ones affected by cervical cancer and cervical abnormalities.
The National Helpline is on 0808 802 8000.