Docs: Pap test best for cervical cancer

There's more news on cancer screening tests, this time for women.

Scientists advising the government say a Pap test is a good way to screen young and middle-aged women for cervical cancer, and it's needed only once every three years. But they say there is not enough evidence yet to back testing for HPV, the virus that causes the disease.

That's at odds with the American Cancer Society and other groups, which say using both tests can be an option for women over 30. Those groups and the government advisory task force separately plan to release proposed new guidelines for cervical cancer screening Wednesday and invite public comment. The same task force recommended against routine PSA tests for prostate cancer, saying they were doing more harm than good.

Not enough is known about HPV testing, concludes the review, published Monday, led by Dr. Evelyn Whitlock of Kaiser Permanente Northwest's Center for Health Research in Portland, Ore. -- AP