Milford chronicle., 1962-11-16
Cervicul Cancer Deuths
Could Soon Be Ended

Cervical cancer could be virtual
! ly eliminated as a major cause of
death among women by repeated
examinations at yearly intervals, a
communicative study indicated
recently.
More than 5000 women in Lou
isville and surrounding jefferson
County, KY, were screened f or
cancer of the cervix by the Pap
smear test in the study begun in
1856, according to a report in the
current Journal of the American
Medical Association.
The tests revealed abnormal
cells in S83 women who then un-
derwent biopsies, Drs- William NJ.
Christopherson, James E. Parker
and James c. Drye, University of
Louisville School of Medicine, said
Preliminary analysis shows that
209 invasive cancers were detect
ed, they said. Most of these were
in the early stage, they said, and
should have relatively favorable
outcome"
A total of 2SS localized cancers
were found, they said, and these
are perhaps totally curable."
Another 210 possible precancer-
Gus conditions were found, they
said.
The overall incidence of prev
iously undiagnosed invasive can
Ger was 2.S per 1000 women and
81 per 1000 women for localized
cancer, the study showed
The women who took part in the
study were private patients, a.
tients from a charity hospital and
women working in industries, the
authors said
The rate of incidence of invas-
i've and localized cancer was high
er among the charity patients than
the private patients, they said. A
mong charity patients, invaSice
| cancer occurred in A per 1000
and localized cancer in 40 per l.
900 compared with an incidence a.
mong private patients of 25 per L.
600 for invasive cancer and 3.6 per
1000 for localized cancer.
L HC OotloCCoIOu1lC
of the disease are most interesting
and deserving of further study"
the author said, adding:
ut is evident that the most re-
warding yield of cervical cancer
detection is among the income
group that can least afford the ex-
animation. We are concentrating
nffnrf +hic. o. 1,
present time"
The rate of incidence of invas-
i've cancer among industrial work
ers (0.9 per 10000 also was lower
than among charity patients. How
ever, the researchers said. this
probably reflected the younger a.
verage age of the industrial group.
A total of 26,913 women with
negative results from their f IRIS t
test returned for a second test a
year later, the physicians said. In
this group, they said, 132 women.
or 4.9 per 1000 had developed alb
normal cells during the year, in
dicating the benefits of additional
yearly screening.
n oiAhiie'i iaAC vi NtDIOllildl tell
studies, AZ per 1000 women, re-
suited from the third annual
screening of 9,51S women W h
negative results from the two pre-
vious tests, they said.
Although the number of women
in the original study group W h o
returned for later, tests declined.
they said, the total number of
women screened in the Louisville
area has increased each year. 1t is
now estimated that so per cent Of
the female population of the coun-
ty over age 20 have had one or
more tests. they said
From this preliminary evalua-
ttion and from the reports of 9TH
ers it would seem that cervical
cytology for the early detection of
cancer is the most effective way
of controlling the disease" the
physicians concluded. "It further.
is suggested that repeated exam
nations at yearly intervals would
virtually eliminate cervical cancer
as a major cause of death in our
female DODul latiOn ~