Annotation

Cervical cancer is the most common genital neoplasm in women and remains a significant public health concern globally. Despite its visual localization, advanced-stage (III-IV) cervical cancer is diagnosed in 39.8% of patients. Cervical cancer ranks among the most commonly diagnosed cancers worldwide, alongside breast cancer, which is second in frequency and third in mortality among cancers affecting women.

Purpose: to enhance the effectiveness of cytological diagnostics in cervical cancer screening, aiming to identify precancerous changes and reduce morbidity and mortality risks.

Methods. A retrospective analysis was conducted on cervical smears from women aged 30–70 in the Aktobe region, screened using liquid cytology for cervical cancer. The study included 27,163 women in 2021, 29,205 in 2022, 27,396 in 2023, and 25,819 in the first nine months of 2024.

Results. From 2021 to 2024, a total of 4,359 women showed cytological abnormalities. Among them, atypical squamous cells of undetermined significance (ASC-US) were detected in 144 cases (3.3%), mild dysplasia in 252 cases (5.7%), severe dysplasia in 167 cases (3.8%), suspected cancer in 40 cases (0.9%), and confirmed cancer in 8 cases (0.2%). The data revealed that pathological changes were more prevalent in urban women compared to rural women, with precancerous cervical changes occurring nearly twice as often in urban populations.

Conclusion. Cytological screening using liquid cytology effectively identifies precancerous changes and cervical cancer. Urban women demonstrated a higher prevalence of pathological processes, underscoring the need for targeted interventions to address regional disparities in cervical cancer screening outcomes.
Keywords: cytological screening, liquid cytology, cervical cancer, metaplasia, epithelial proliferation, dysplasia