Concordance of at home self-collected vaginal swabs with provider-collected cervical high risk HPV DNA tests for transmasculine populations
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Citation
Abstract
Cervical cancer one of the most common cancers in people with cervixes globally with a majority of cases linked to high risk human papilloma virus (hrHPV). While hrHPV and precancerous cervical changes can be detectable long before a cancer diagnosis with DNA testing and pap smears, there are still many individuals who are overdue for screening. LGTBQ populations, specifically transmasculine (TM) populations, are under screened due to a variety of barriers including gendered healthcare facilities, insensitive providers, increased gender dysphoria from the pelvic exam, and increased rates of inadequate pap smears in TM populations. In addition, recent political attacks against transgender individuals and the healthcare providers who care for them threaten to decrease screening rates further. A screening method, such as the vaginal hrHPV swab, that can be performed at home may allow TM individuals to mitigate these barriers. While there have been many global studies of the vaginal swabs in cisgender populations, there have been limited studies their use in transgender individuals. This paper will review the specific barriers to cervical cancer screening TM individuals face, the efficacy of mailed self-collection vaginal swabs in a general population with cervixes and propose a study to assess the concordance of mailed self-collection vaginal swabs to provider collected cervical swabs for hrHPV detection in TM individuals.