By Dr Adeline Tan, Histopathologist and Cytopathologist, Osborne Park
The Australian Cervical Screening Program guidelines were updated in April this year to keep the program effective and relevant, with the goal of eliminating cervical cancer in Australia by 2035.
It’s an ambitious target, but one we’re all working towards.
You’ll be able to access the updated guidelines on the Cancer Council Australia website. They’re designed to be as user-friendly as possible, so you can quickly get the information you need to keep providing the best care to your patients.
Helpful resources
To make sure you’re ready to implement the new guidelines, there are some great training resources and sessions available.
Updated Education and Training Modules: There are updated modules on the Australian Centre for the Prevention of Cervical Cancer (ACPCC) website with five e-learning modules on the National Cervical Screening Program (NCSP) clinical education bundle.
These modules are designed to walk you through the latest changes in an easy-to-understand way, so you can confidently apply them in your practice.
RACGP Webinars: The RACGP have hosted two webinars on the changes to the NCSP guidelines. On demand recordings are now available for free.
These resources are about making sure you’re supported as the guidelines evolve, and they cover important changes around both clinician-collected and self-collected results.
Why and how are the guidelines changing?
The updates are part of an ongoing effort to refine the cervical screening process, especially since the introduction of the renewed screening test. After feedback from the Cervical Screening Expert Panel (CEP), there were certain identified areas that needed more clarity.
Plus, with new evidence emerging over time, it was time to update the guidelines to reflect the latest scientific data.
RELATED: Increasing cervical screening through self-collection
The Guidelines Working Party took a thorough approach, reviewing the latest evidence and gathering feedback from both experts and the public.
The result is a set of guidelines that reflect the most current evidence in cervical cancer prevention and help ensure the program stays effective as we move closer to our 2035 elimination goal.
These updated guidelines have the backing of some of the most respected medical organisations in Australia, including RACGP, Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists, Royal College of Pathologists of Australasia, Australian Society for Colposcopy and Cervical Pathology and Australian Society of Gynaecologic Oncologists.
Key messages
- Changes were made to cervical screening in April 2025
- Resources and support are available
- The aim remains to eliminate cervical cancer by 2035
Key changes
Colposcopists now have guidelines for managing HPV (16/18) detection without visible lesions, including the possibility of endocervical curettage if appropriate. There is an option to defer re-referral for HPV (16/18) detected with negative LBC if follow-up testing remains HPV-positive.
RELATED: Cervical screening changes
Clarifications have also been made regarding the diagnostic excision of the transformation zone. Loop electrosurgical excision procedure (LEEP) is now recommended over cone biopsy due to lower postsurgical complications, as both procedures have similar effectiveness.
Patients with immune-deficiency have been separated into highly suppressive conditions (three-yearly testing) and moderately increased risk (five-yearly testing) categories.
Other important changes to “test of cure” and post hysterectomy follow-up are summarised in the table
Author competing interests – nil
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