Ryan's District Boards

By Shereen Jegtvig NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Americans are more aware that there is a test for the human papilloma virus (HPV) than counterparts in the UK and Australia, according to a new study, but few people knew much more than that. "Awareness of HPV has tended to be low but has been rising since the introduction of testing and vaccination," said Jo Waller, the study's senior author. People seem to be more aware of HPV vaccination than testing, however, which is not surprising given the publicity around the vaccine, added Waller, a public health researcher at University College London. The Pap test, used to look for abnormal cell changes in the cervix, is much older and generally familiar to most people, but the newer HPV test looks for the virus that causes those changes, Waller said.