Human papillomavirus testing for primary cervical cancer screening.

With our understanding of human papillomavirus (HPV) and cervical cancer, the availability of HPV testing, and the known limitations of cervical cytology, it is time to reassess cervical cancer screening technologies. This article reviews recent randomized trials comparing primary HPV testing with cervical cytology in screening for cervical cancer, and also analyzes the impact of the HPV vaccine on screening cytology.