PAPNET for cervical cytology screening : Experience in Greece

To validate the efficacy of PAPNET for cervical cytology screening. From a total of 50,000 gynecologic cases we selected 24 primarily negative smears from patients who, during follow-up, developed a precancerous lesion or cancer in a short time, ranging from a few months to two years. These negative smears were rescreened by the PAPNET automated system and reevaluated by two observers. A third observer blindly reevaluated the same cases manually. Reevaluation after PAPNET screening showed one false negative smear, for a rate comparable to that of manual reevaluation, which also reclassified the same case. The time required to interpret a smear using the PAPNET system was approximately one minute, while the time required for conventional manual screening was approximately five. PAPNET is an efficient and fast screener for the detection of precancerous cervical lesions and cancer.