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The Papanicolaou test is a method of cervical screening used to detect potentially precancerous and cancerous processes in the cervix or colon. Abnormal findings are often followed up by more sensitive diagnostic procedures and, if warranted, interventions that aim to prevent progression to cervical cancer. The test was independently invented in the 1920s by the Greek physician Georgios Papanikolaou and named after him. A simplified version of the test was introduced by the Canadian obstetrician Anna Marion Hilliard in 1957.
Cervical cancer is a cancer arising from the cervix. It is due to the abnormal growth of cells that have the ability to invade or spread to other parts of the body. Early on, typically no symptoms are seen. Later symptoms may include abnormal vaginal bleeding, pelvic pain or pain during sexual intercourse. While bleeding after sex may not be serious, it may also indicate the presence of cervical cancer.
Georgios Nikolaou Papanikolaou was a Greek physician, zoologist and microscopist who was a pioneer in cytopathology and early cancer detection, and inventor of the "Pap smear".
Cytopathology is a branch of pathology that studies and diagnoses diseases on the cellular level. The discipline was founded by George Nicolas Papanicolaou in 1928. Cytopathology is generally used on samples of free cells or tissue fragments, in contrast to histopathology, which studies whole tissues. Cytopathology is frequently, less precisely, called "cytology", which means "the study of cells".
Colposcopy is a medical diagnostic procedure to visually examine the cervix as well as the vagina and vulva using a colposcope. Numbing should be requested prior to procedure.
Anal cancer is a cancer which arises from the anus, the distal opening of the gastrointestinal tract. Symptoms may include bleeding from the anus or a lump near the anus. Other symptoms may include pain, itchiness, or discharge from the anus. A change in bowel movements may also occur.
Cervical intraepithelial neoplasia (CIN), also known as cervical dysplasia, is the abnormal growth of cells on the surface of the cervix that could potentially lead to cervical cancer. More specifically, CIN refers to the potentially precancerous transformation of cells of the cervix.
The Cartwright Inquiry was a committee of inquiry held in New Zealand from 1987 to 1988 that was commissioned by the Minister of Health, Michael Bassett, to investigate whether, as alleged in an article in Metro magazine, there had been a failure to treat patients adequately with cervical carcinoma in situ (CIS) at National Women’s Hospital (NWH) by Herbert Green, a specialist obstetrician and gynaecologist and associate professor at the Postgraduate School of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, University of Auckland. The inquiry was headed by District Court Judge Silvia Cartwright, later High Court Justice, Dame and Governor-General of New Zealand. The Report of the Cervical Cancer Inquiry was released on 5 August 1988.
Aurel A. Babeș was a Romanian scientist and one of the discoverers of the vaginal smear as screening test for cervical cancer.
George Herbert Green, B.A., BSc, M.B., Ch.B.,, M.R.C.O.G.(Lond.), was a New Zealand Obstetrician and Gynaecologist who led the National Women's Hospital Cervical Cancer Unit as Professor through the 1960s and 1970s and became notorious for conducting an alleged unethical experiment that was the subject of the Cartwright Inquiry.
Vaginal intraepithelial neoplasia (VAIN) is a condition that describes premalignant histological findings in the vagina characterized by dysplastic changes.
An anal Pap smear is the anal counterpart of the cervical Pap smear. It is used for the early detection of anal cancer. Some types of human papillomavirus (HPV) can cause anal cancer. Other HPV types cause anogenital warts. Cigarette smokers, men who have sex with men, individuals with a history of immunosuppression and women with a history of cervical, vaginal and vulval cancer are at increased risk of getting anal cancer. Vaccination against HPV before initial sexual exposure can reduce the risk of anal cancer.
The Bethesda system (TBS), officially called The Bethesda System for Reporting Cervical Cytology, is a system for reporting cervical or vaginal cytologic diagnoses, used for reporting Pap smear results. It was introduced in 1988 and revised in 1991, 2001, and 2014. The name comes from the location of the conference, sponsored by the National Institutes of Health, that established the system.
Speculoscopy is a procedure in which a special blue-white light (Speculite) is used to examine the cervix for cancerous or pre-cancerous lesions.
Epithelial dysplasia, a term becoming increasingly referred to as intraepithelial neoplasia, is the sum of various disturbances of epithelial proliferation and differentiation as seen microscopically. Individual cellular features of dysplasia are called epithelial atypia.
Cancer screening aims to detect cancer before symptoms appear. This may involve blood tests, urine tests, DNA tests, other tests, or medical imaging. The benefits of screening in terms of cancer prevention, early detection and subsequent treatment must be weighed against any harms.
Cervical cancer screening is a medical screening test designed to identify risk of cervical cancer. Cervical screening may involve looking for viral DNA, and/or to identify abnormal, potentially precancerous cells within the cervix as well as cells that have progressed to early stages of cervical cancer. One goal of cervical screening is to allow for intervention and treatment so abnormal lesions can be removed prior to progression to cancer. An additional goal is to decrease mortality from cervical cancer by identifying cancerous lesions in their early stages and providing treatment prior to progression to more invasive disease.
Liquid-based cytology is a method of preparing samples for examination in cytopathology. The sample is collected, normally by a small brush, in the same way as for a conventional smear test, but rather than the smear being transferred directly to a microscope slide, the sample is deposited into a small bottle of preservative liquid. At the laboratory, the liquid is treated to remove other elements such as mucus before a layer of cells is placed on a slide.
Microglandular hyperplasia (MGH) of the cervix is an epithelial benign abnormality (lesion) associated with gland proliferation. It can terminate in mature squamous metaplasia, and it is suspected reserve cells are involved in this process, perhaps in the form of reserve cell hyperplasia with glandular differentiation.
Akinyinka Omigbodun is a Nigerian professor of Gynecology, Obstetrics and former provost of the College of Medicine, University of Ibadan. He once served as president of the West African College of Surgeons and chair of the management board of the Consortium for Advanced Research Training in Africa (CARTA).
References
- ↑ Stafl A. Cervicography: a new method for cervical cancer detection. Am J Obstet Gynecol. 1981 Apr 1;139(7):815-25. PMID 7211987
- ↑ "Cervicography". Archived from the original on 2011-07-24. Retrieved 2011-06-18.
- ↑ Nuovo J, Melnikow J, Hutchison B, Paliescheskey M. Is cervicography a useful diagnostic test? A systematic overview of the literature. J Am Board Fam Pract. 1997 Nov-Dec;10(6):390-7. PMID 9407479
- 1 2 van Niekerk WA, Dunton CJ, Richart RM, Hilgarth M, Kato H, Kaufman RH, Mango LJ, Nozawa S, Robinowitz M. Colposcopy, cervicography, speculoscopy and endoscopy. International Academy of Cytology Task Force summary. Diagnostic Cytology Towards the 21st Century: An International Expert Conference and Tutorial. Acta Cytol. 1998 Jan-Feb;42(1):33-49. PMID 9479322
- ↑ De Vuyst H, Claeys P, Njiru S, Muchiri L, Steyaert S, De Sutter P, Van Marck E, Bwayo J, Temmerman M. Comparison of pap smear, visual inspection with acetic acid, human papillomavirus DNA-PCR testing and cervicography. Int J Gynaecol Obstet. 2005 May;89(2):120-6. PMID 15847874
- ↑ Pretorius RG, Bao YP, Belinson JL, Burchette RJ, Smith JS, Qiao YL. Inappropriate gold standard bias in cervical cancer screening studies. Int J Cancer. 2007 Nov 15;121(10):2218-24. PMID 17657715