The Path to Eliminating Cervical Cancer in Canada: Past, Present and Future Directions.

Cervical cancer remains a common cancer affecting women in Canada. While cervical cancer incidence and mortality in Canada have declined for several decades due to the success of organized, provincial cervical cancer screening programs, further decreases will require enhancement of primary, secondary, and tertiary prevention efforts. The present commentary provides a historical overview of cervical cancer trends in Canada, presents current statistics on cervical cancer incidence, mortality and survival, and discusses future directions in relation to cervical cancer elimination.

Attitudes and Preferences Regarding Non-Clinic-Based Self-Collection for Sexually Transmitted Infection Testing Among Clinic Attendees in British Columbia, Canada.

Background: Sexually transmitted infections (STIs) are a global epidemic; although screening programs reduce transmission, barriers, including access and stigma, hinder success. The World Health Organization highlights the ability to maintain health without the direct support of a health care provider as one form of self-care, which can be applied to STI testing. Self-care through non-clinic-based self-collection for STI testing can address barriers while providing comprehensive care.

Sociodemographic characteristics of women with invasive cervical cancer in British Columbia, 2004-2013: a descriptive study.

Background: Although cancer screening has led to reductions in the incidence of invasive cervical cancer (ICC) across Canada, benefits of prevention efforts are not equitably distributed. This study investigated the sociodemographic characteristics of women with ICC in British Columbia compared with the general female population in the province.

Methods: In this descriptive study, data of individuals 18 years and older diagnosed with ICC between 2004 and 2013 were obtained from the BC Cancer Registry.