U.K. survey shows most people aren't aware of cancer/STD link.

2004 JUL 1 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Most people in the U.K. don't know that cervical cancer is linked to a common sexually transmitted virus, according to a new Cancer Research UK study.

Over 99% of cases of cervical cancer are associated with the human papillomavirus (HPV) and the U.K.'s National Health Service is running a pilot study to see whether the addition of testing for HPV could improve the existing cervical screening program.

Jo Waller, of Cancer Research UK's Health Behavior Unit at University College London, and colleagues, authors of the study, which appeared in the June 7, 2004, issue of Preventive Medicine, say that HPV testing should only be introduced alongside a public education programme to ensure that people know about the virus and understand what the test means.

"HPV infection is the main risk factor for cervical cancer," says Waller. "But our research shows that less that 1% of the population know about the link."

HPV infection is extremely common, affecting 70% of the sexually active population at some time in their lives. In most people the infection is harmless and has no obvious symptoms. It is usually cleared by the body's immune system without causing any problems, but in some women the infection persists and can eventually lead to cervical cancer.

The risk of getting an HPV infection increases with the number of sexual partners, but it is possible to catch the virus from just one sexual partner and be unaware of it for years. A test for high-risk forms of the virus already exists ...