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Recent national clinical practice guidelines recommend repeat Pap smear testing every 2 to 3 years for women at low risk for cervical cancer (risk assessment based on prior repeat negative Pap tests, negative human papillomavirus [HPV] tests, or both; JW Womens Health Nov 23 2009). To assess physicians' actual beliefs about testing intervals, researchers surveyed 950 U.S. primary care physicians (family physicians [FPs], internists [IMs], and obstetrician/gynecologists [OB/GYNs]) who performed Pap tests and HPV testing. Respondents were asked to recommend the interval for the next screening test for a 35-year-old woman in three different scenarios.
For the simplest scenario, in which the patient had no new sexual partners for the past 5 year…