B.C. eyes options that may be more accurate than Pap tests

Gina Ogilvie, a UBC professor at the School of Population and Public Health and research chair in the global control of HPV-related disease, was quoted for a Globe and Mail story on B.C.’s new cervical cancer testing policy.

According to the new policy, women should be screened for cervical cancer with a Pap test every three years instead of two, starting at the age of 25 rather than 21. The B.C. Cancer Agency says the goal is to avoid over-diagnosis and unnecessary treatment.

“I think it’s a good thing,” said Ogilvie. “I think B.C. is now coming in line with what the emerging evidence is around the frequency of screening.”