Review of Cervical Screening in a Nigerian Tertiary Hospita

Abstract

Background: Cervical cancer is the commonest gynaecological cancer in developing countries due to poor uptake of screening services. Objective: To determine the prevalence and pattern of abnormal Pap smears and the relationship of the abnormal smears with risk factors for the development of cervical cancers. Materials and Methods: Retrospective analysis of data from the cervical cancer screening centre of the Jos University Teaching Hospital (JUTH). Results: Of the 3875 women screened, 1418 (36.6%) had abnormal smears with low grade squamous intra-epithelial lesion (38.2%) being the commonest lesion. Among those with abnormal smears, 590 (41.6%) had one risk factor each and 828 (58.4%) had two or more risk factors while those women who were 50 years and above constituted the highest number with abnormal smears. Conclusion: This study showed that only few women access cervical screening services and amongst those who accessed the services, a large proportion had abnormal smears. Also, the likelihood of having abnormal cervical smears increased with the number of risk factors and advancing age. There should therefore be more awareness campaigns and cervical screening services should be made accessible and affordable for all women.