Research Study Opportunity NCCC is a partner with the University of California, San Francisco on a project to try to understand how best to give women information about their options for screening for cervical cancer. The researchers are looking to speak with women who would be willing to participate in focus groups and interviews about their opinions and experiences on this topic. Eligible women for this study are between the ages of 21-30 years old who have had dysplasia or cervical cancer. Women in Northern California specifically the San Francisco Bay area are especially encouraged to respond. If you (or someone you know) is interested or would like more information, please contact
[email protected] and we’ll be in touch when the study begins recruiting.
credit card alert Many of your use square readers at your events to collected funds/donations/ etc. Please note that charges made by you appear as “American Sexual Health” on credit card statements. Please be aware of this and share this with your support community as you continue to collect funds via credit card. If you do not have a credit card reader at this time and would like to request one for an upcoming event that you are having, please be in touch with your chapter manager and she will get you set up with Square.
chapter leader
news JuLY 2014
FDA Approves HPV Test for Primary Screening
on May 28, 2014 | ASHA Blog
On April 24 the FDA gave the go ahead for the first human papillomavirus (HPV) test to be used as primary screening for cervical cancer. This new FDA decision allows one test, the cobas® HPV test (manufactured by Roche), to be used alone for primary cervical cancer screening. This test detects 14 “high risk” types of HPV while also identifying HPV 16 and 18 specifically, the two types found with approximately 70% of cervical cancers globally. Under the new indication, women who test positive for high risk HPV with cobas will than have a Pap test, while those positive for the more aggressive HPV 16 and HPV 18 will be referred for colposcopy (where a health care provider uses a special lighted microscope to examine a woman’s cervix directly). HPV infections are usually harmless and most are cleared naturally by the immune system, but in a small number of cases the virus persists and causes cell changes to the cervix that, if not detected, can lead to cancer. Paps revolutionized women’s health: since their introduction in the middle of the 20th century, cervical cancer rates have plummeted in countries where the tests are widely available. The venerable Pap – which finds abnormal cell changes but not HPV- was supplemented in the 1990s with the advent of HPV tests that actually detect the genetic material of the virus. HPV tests have been tethered to Paps, used either as follow-up for women with abnormal Pap results or as a Pap/HPV co-test for women 30 and older. Experts are quick to point out this new ruling doesn’t mean the Pap test will be going away. Deborah Arrindell, vice president for health policy with the American Sexual Health Association, say “The FDA decision to license HPV primary screening simply provides an additional option for health care providers. Current screening guidelines for Pap and HPV tests remain in place, and Pap tests will be an essential tool in preventing cervical cancer for years to come.” Cervical cancer screening guidelines issued by the American Cancer Society, the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force, and others organizations call for Pap tests every three years beginning at age 21, with Pap/HPV co-testing every five years suitable with women over age 30. Arrindell says professional medical societies like these are crafting interim guidance for primary HPV testing until more formal guidelines are adopted. Read the FDA news release on the decision here. A Q&A developed by the Society of Gynegologic Oncology is available here.
chapter leader conference We had a great conference in Orlando on June 28th. Topics included telling your health story, social media tips, policy & advocacy, successful fundraising and awareness events, and more. For those of you who were unable to make it, we’ve uploaded the powerpoint presentations to the chapter tools page on the NCCC website. We were able to video pieces of the group discussions and are editing those now and will get them up soon.
