Vinegar-Based Test Slashes Cervical Cancer Death Rates by 31 Percent

A simple screening test conducted on women with cervical cancer using vinegar slashed the death rates of cervical cancer by 31 percent in a group of 150,000 poor women in India, reports Reuters. This new testing is an economical alternative to detect the disease.

The new study was led by Dr. Surendra Shastri, Tata Memorial Hospital in Mumbai, India. In a 15-year randomized study conducted on 150,000 women in India, vinegar screening test dropped the mortality rate by one-third among cervical cancer patients. Cervical cancer is one of the leading causes of death among Indian women.

A vinegar cancer test offers to be a low-cost alternative for those who can't afford screening tools such as Pap smears and tests for the presence of the HPV virus that triggers the majority of cervical cancer, especially in a country like India. The estimation provided by the researchers indicates that this test can prevent 22,000 deaths in India and nearly 72,600 deaths worldwide.   

According to the U.S. Center for Disease Control and Prevention, it is important that a women gets herself tested between the age of 21-65, every three years.

The vinegar screening test was launched in 20 slums in the city of Mumbai. Around 75,360 women were chosen to be screened every two years with the vinegar test, and 76,178 women acted as a control group. The women belonged to an age group of 35-64 years and none of them had a history of cancer. They were trained by the research team on how the vinegar solution has to be applied, and then carry out a self-assessment later.

On applying the vinegar solution in the cervix, the pre-cancerous cells turn white, making it visible after one minute. The vinegar test was conducted every two years, over four rounds. The women were constantly given complete information to ensure they were conducting the test correctly. The control group just received cancer education and vouchers for a free Pap test.

On comparing the data of those women who did the vinegar screening and those who didn't, it was seen that the mortality rate dropped by 31 percent.

Surprised with this new testing, the Indian government invested on training primary health care workers in order to provide screening to all women between the age group of 35-64.

"We hope our results will have a profound effect in reducing the burden of cervical cancer in India and around the world," Shastri was quoted as saying in Reuters.