New Approaches in Cervical Cancer Screening: Insights from the American Cancer Society's 2025 Update

American Cancer Society endorses self-collected vaginal HPV sampling as an option for cervical cancer screening in average-risk people — the guidance broadens access to home- and community-based testing.

Primary HPV screening historically relied on clinician-collected cervical specimens obtained during scheduled clinic visits, creating geographic, logistic, and scheduling barriers. Self-collection shifts that clinic-only model by enabling home- or community-based sampling, addressing access and patient-preference obstacles and allowing outreach programs to move from clinic-centered reminders to direct-access sampling strategies that increase participation. Eligible candidates are generally average-risk people due for primary HPV-based screening (commonly aged 25–65).

Follow-up pathways mirror established primary-HPV algorithms: a negative HPV result from a validated self-collected vaginal sample returns the patient to routine screening intervals (typically every 3 years for primary HPV screening), while an HPV-positive result requires reflex triage with genotyping, clinician-collected evaluation, or colposcopy per standard algorithms. Laboratories must validate processing of self-collected specimens, and programs should prepare scripted counseling, patient-facing sampling instructions, and clear sample-labeling and transport procedures to safeguard specimen integrity and result reliability.

The reported guidance supports discontinuing screening after age 65 for average-risk people with documented adequate prior negative tests.

Key Takeaways:

• What’s new? The guidance endorses validated self-collected vaginal HPV samples as an acceptable option for average-risk screening, expanding testing pathways beyond clinic-only collection.
• Who’s affected? People commonly aged 25–65 at average risk—particularly those facing access barriers or preferring home sampling; exclude symptomatic individuals and those under surveillance.
• What changes next? Integrate validated self-sampling into outreach workflows, ensure laboratory validation and robust follow-up protocols, and train staff on counseling, logistics, and result-driven triage.