“We know that smoking is a risk factor for persistent HPV (the human papillomavirus) – that is HPV that your body cannot clear, which can lead to cell abnormalities in the cervix and cervical cancer,” according to Professor Nóirín Russell, CervicalCheck Clinical Director, HSE National Screening Service. “HPV is the cause of most cervical cancers. Most people will get HPV at some stage in their lives. For most people, their immune system will clear the virus naturally from their body within one to two years. For some people, the virus will remain active.”

Marking HPV Awareness Day in recent weeks, the HSE announced a new initiative to support patients and healthcare professionals to understand the links between smoking, HPV and cervical cancer. Smoking increases the risk of having an active HPV infection which can lead to harmful health outcomes such as cell abnormalities in the cervix and cervical cancer.

Through this initiative, resources and supports are being provided to women who are referred to colposcopy clinics through CervicalCheck and who are smokers. The project aims to support women who smoke so they can better understand the relationship between smoking, HPV and cervical cancer, and the benefits of quitting smoking. In addition, the HSE QUIT team is putting in place e-referrals from colposcopy clinics, so that clinics can easily refer their patients to quit smoking services. 

According to Prof Russell “about 4 in 10 women who attend colposcopy clinics in Ireland are smokers, and we want to support our colposcopy clinics to have conversations with women about smoking, and the link between HPV and cervical cancer. Colposcopy is a vital part of the CervicalCheck programme and colposcopy clinics are a suitable setting for brief interventions about smoking...