Cervical cancer screening in Korea: Report on the national cancer screening programme in 2008

The National Cancer Screening Programme (NCSP) began in 1999. The purpose of this report is to evaluate the results of the NCSP for cervical cancer in 2008 and to present essential evidence associated with the cervical cancer screening programme in Korea. Screening results were obtained from the National Cancer Screening Information System. Participation rates and recall rates were calculated with 95% confidence intervals (CIs). The target population of the cervical cancer screening programme in 2008 was 4,701,167 Korean women aged 30 and over, 1,208,581 of whom underwent Papanicolaou (Pap) smear tests (25.7% participation rate). The recall rate was 0.41% (95% CI, 0.40 to 0.42). Although efforts to facilitate participation and to reduce disparities in cervical cancer screening among Korean women are needed, the results do provide support for evidence-based strategies for control of cervical cancer in Korea.