Being “HPV positive” in the 7th year of the national cervical screening program: A cross-sectional study in a tertiary hospital in southern Türkiye

INTRODUCTION: Human papillomavirus (HPV)-based cervical cancer screening program has been conducting in Türkiye since 2014. Because of the sexually transmitted nature of the virus and the risk of developing cancer, HPV screening has challenges arising from the concerns of women who receive positive test results. The primary aim of this study was to assess women’s knowledge of being a carrier of HPV at the 7th year of the screening. Second, we measured the anxiety and general distress levels of women, and we sought to describe contributing factors to such feelings.
METHODS: This prospective observational study was conducted in a tertiary hospital between January 2021 and August 2021. Participants were women referred to our outpatient clinic because of a positive high risk HPV test result. State-Trait Anxiety Inventory-State (STAI-S), General Health Questionnaire (GHQ-12), and seven-item questionnaire developed by our group were completed by all participants.
RESULTS: There were 115 eligible women for the study. The mean±standard deviation (SD) age was 43±8 years. 71 (61.7%) women reported that they had never heard of the screening program. 67 (58.2%) women stated that they thought they had cervical cancer, and 22 (19.1%) women said they would have cancer in the future. 53 (46.1%) women specified that the family physician provided insufficient information about the results. The mean STAI-S scores of the participants ranged from 48 (SD=6.4), and GHQ scores ranged from 3.2 (SD=3.4). There was no significant difference in these scores regarding patients’ age, education level, or working status (p>0.5).
DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSION: Women with positive screening results who applied to our hospital had low knowledge of HPV and screening program. They also had high levels of anxiety and psychological distress. These unpleasant feelings may negatively affect patients’ compliance with screening. Family physicians or nurses working in cervical screening should be aware and well-trained about HPV.