Assessing Cervical Cancer Screening Coverage Using a Population-Based Behavioral Risk Factor Survey--Thailand, 2010.

Cervical cancer is the second most common cancer and fourth leading cause of cancer-related deaths among women in Thailand. In 2005, the Ministry of Public Health (MoPH) in Thailand initiated a phased national cervical cancer screening program. To monitor progress toward national screening targets--80% of women 30-60 years of age screened for cervical cancer once in the previous 5 years by 2013--the MoPH used the 2010 Thai Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS) to assess cervical cancer screening coverage. Results from the survey showed that 67.4% of women aged 30-60 years had been screened for cervical cancer in the past 5 years with varying screening coverage by region, residence, education, and marital status. Although the national cervical cancer screening program in Thailand appears to be close to reaching its national targets, the causes of lower coverage in some subpopulations need to be identified so that targeted interventions can be developed to increase coverage in these groups.