Cervical Cancer Screening

The American Cancer Society has issued updated cervical-cancer screening guidelines in December 2025 that deem patient self-collected vaginal swabs for HPV testing a safe and accurate alternative to clinician-collected samples, potentially reducing reliance on Pap smears. Lead author Dr. Rebecca Perkins says HPV testing detects 90–95% of precancers versus 70–80% for Pap tests; positive HPV results still require follow-up testing, and widespread availability of self-collection is not yet in place.