D.I.Y. Pap Smears?

An enterprising OB/GYN has invented a way for women to give themselves a cervical exam.
Dr. Arthur Fournier’s cheap, simple home-testing device can be given to women in developing countries “who for financial or logistical reasons could not – or for social or cultural reasons would not – get a Pap smear.”
Women in the U.S. may not love them, but Pap smears are certainly effective in reducing rates of cervical cancer. Since the procedure was adopted 50 years ago, cervical cancer rates in the U.S. have fallen by 80 percent. But the disease has remained the leading cause of cancer death among women in the developing world, where Pap smears are rare because they require a high level of training to collect and interpret, and also violate taboos in many parts of the world.
Fournier’s plastic, tampon-like device will cost about 25 cents. It’s designed to be inserted like a tampon, rubbed against the cervix and removed. The device’s removable tip goes into a small container and is sent off for testing.
Product trials suggested the device is about as effective as a test in a clinic. After several years of testing and development, the at-home Pap smear is set to go into widespread use this fall in South Africa.