PurposeCervical cancer is a leading cause of cancer-related mortality in low- and
middle-income countries (LMICs) and screening in LMICs is extremely limited.
We aimed to implement on-site high-risk human papillomavirus (hrHPV) DNA
testing in cohorts of women from an urban factory and from a rural
village.MethodsA total of 802 women were recruited for this study in partnership with La
Liga Contra el Cancer through the establishment of women’s health
resource fairs at two locations in Honduras: a textile factory (n = 401) in
the city of San Pedro Sula and the rural village of El Rosario (n = 401) in
Yoro. Participants received a routine cervical examination during which
three sterile cytobrushes were used to collect cervical samples for testing.
hrHPV genotyping was performed using a hrHPV genotyping assay and a
real-time polymerase chain reaction instrument.ResultshrHPV status across all participants at both sites was 13% hrHPV positive and
67% hrHPV negative. When hrHPV status was compared across all three testing
sites, hrHPV-positive rates were approximately equal among the factory
(13%), village (12%), and confirmatory testing at Dartmouth-Hitchcock
Medical Center (Lebanon, NH; 14%). hrHPV genotype was compared across sites,
with HPV16 showing the highest infection rate (15%), followed by HPV59
(12%), and HPV68 (11%). There was a low prevalence of HPV18 observed in both
populations compared with the hrHPV-positive population in the United
States.ConclusionIn collaboration with oncologists and pathologists from La Liga Contra el
Cancer, we were able to provide a continuum of care once health-fair testing
was performed. We established a method and implementation plan for hrHPV
testing that is sustainable in LMICs.
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