Cervical cancer is one of the most common gynecological malignancies, and HPV (human papillomavirus), as a predisposing factor for cervical cancer, is an important threat factor to women’s health. Many women want to have HPV screening to determine whether they are infected with HPV virus. So, how exactly is HPV screening done? What is the correct way to take a sample for HPV screening?
At present, HPV screening is commonly done by a doctor in a hospital. The patient needs to lie on the examination bed and remove her pants; then the doctor will use a speculum to expose the cervix, then use a sampling brush to finish collecting the specimen at the cervical opening and send the sampling tube to the laboratory for testing; finally, the results will be analyzed using PCR technology.
HPV testing method.
Use the HPV sampling brush to penetrate deeply into the cervical canal, rotate the collection brush in a clockwise manner for 4-5 turns and then stay for 10 seconds to collect the exfoliated cells from the cervical canal and the cervical os, then remove the collection brush and place it in a specimen bottle containing cell preservation solution for storage, rotate and shake so that the cells can fall into the preservation solution. Finally, the brush handle was broken off and the bottle was capped and sent for laboratory testing.
Assay results.
If the mean value of the assay is less than <1.0 it means negative and can be considered as no infection. It is recommended to pay attention to the risk of infection in general, and HPV vaccination can be chosen at an appropriate time.
If the assay value is ≥1.0, it is positive, which means that HPV infection needs to be considered. At this point, it is recommended to go for colposcopy and, if necessary, biopsy of pathological tissue to further confirm whether cervical cancer is present.
Pre-test precautions.
HPV test is an important test for women to screen for cervical cancer and is mainly used to screen married women for cervical disease. Before the HPV test, these 3 points need to be strictly mastered.
1. the HPV test needs to be performed at the time after menstruation is clean.
2. the need to avoid sexual intercourse 24 hours before the HPV test.
3. You should not use medication or douche in the vagina for 3 days before the test to avoid damaging the cells at the cervix and making the test results deviant.
Reference.
[1]Wei D.H.,Zeng L.H. Effect of HPV E6/E7mRNA combined with TCT test on the diagnostic efficacy of screening for early cervical cancer lesions[J]. Electronic Journal of Practical Gynecological Endocrinology. 2022,9(1): 65-67
[2] Lv JL. Impact of colposcopy combined with HPV testing on improving the accuracy of cervical lesion screening [J]. Electronic Journal of Practical Gynecological Endocrinology. 2022,9(1): 72-74
[3] Fu P, Wu WC. Diagnostic value of combined ultrasound, cervical TCT and HPV for cervical cancer in the elderly[J]. Chinese Journal of Gerontology. 2022,42(2): 287-290