Rates of a new diagnosis of cervical cancer, diagnosis at a late stage, & cervical cancer mortality are higher among Latinx women than their non-Hispanic white counterparts. Appropriate screening decreases incidence & mortality rates for cervical cancer. Still, unfortunately, screening rates among Latinx women, specifically those along the U.S.-Mexico border, are significantly lower than the rest of the nation. Barriers to screening in this population include cost, linguistic barriers, & cultural values. High-risk strains of the human papillomavirus (HrHPV) cause over 90% of cervical cancers nationwide. HPV testing is more sensitive than Pap smears in predicting abnormal cells that can beco...

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Rates of a new diagnosis of cervical cancer, diagnosis at a late stage, & cervical cancer mortality are higher among Latinx women than their non-Hispanic white counterparts. Appropriate screening decreases incidence & mortality rates for cervical cancer. Still, unfortunately, screening rates among Latinx women, specifically those along the U.S.-Mexico border, are significantly lower than the rest of the nation. Barriers to screening in this population include cost, linguistic barriers, & cultural values. High-risk strains of the human papillomavirus (HrHPV) cause over 90% of cervical cancers nationwide. HPV testing is more sensitive than Pap smears in predicting abnormal cells that can become pre-cancerous lesions. Self-sampling for HrHPV genotypes has been shown to be accurate & acceptable for cervical cancer screening in different populations. However, there is a lack of studies comparing completion rates of HPV self-collection sampling to clinician-collected samples among Latinx women & among women who have not had already had a Pap smear with abnormal results. To reduce the number of new cervical cancer cases & deaths caused by it, we have to find other screening methods besides traditional in-clinic testing that consider cultural values & other social determinants of health barriers to screening. Therefore, we propose a randomized controlled trial to (1) determine which HPV self-collection method (cervico-vaginal swabs & urine samples) is better at increasing cervical cancer screening completion rates & 2) measure beliefs & preferences towards the HPV self-collection methods compared to clinician-collected sampling among women patients at a Federally Qualified Health Center (FQHC) population in El Paso, Texas. The overall goal is to address low cervical cancer screening rates by determining the impact of self-collection methods on cervical cancer screening completion among Latinxs, a population that suffers cervical cancer disparities.

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