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Introduction: Cervical cancer is currently the third malignancy on number of female deaths in the world. Persistent HPV infection is the main agent involved in cervical cancer development, particularly of high risk (HR) HPV types 16 and 18, accountable for approximately 75% of cervical cancer cases. These aspect has increased demand for HPV detection molecular tests. Objectives: To summarise and update the current knowledge on HPV and cervical cancer screening techniques and, also, discuss HPV-related data and screening techniques in Brazil. Methods: We include articles published in the past 10 years, both in English and Portuguese. Scientific search engines as Scopus, Cochrane Library and Pubmed were used for the terms “cervical cancer”, “HPV”, “cervical carcinoma”, “HPV vaccine”. Only research articles and reviews were considered. Results: The most used techniques for HPV detection are PCR and Hybrid Capture 2 (HC2). However, techniques for detection of HPV E6/E7 mRNA and p16INK4a have been developed, which are still being validated. These tests may help distinguish transient from persistent HPV infections. Conclusion: To reduce the number of cervical cancer cases, screening strategies could be adjusted to contain the best combination of cytological and molecular tests. The ideal screening strategy require high sensitivity to minimize false negative results, and high specificity, to avoid false positives and over referral. Optimization may be achieved by using by co-testing, combining HPV genotyping and cytology triage with low-grade intraepithelial lesions (LSILs) or with atypical squamous cells of undetermined significance (ASC-US). Besides, strategies to prevent cervical cancer cases include HPV vaccination.

Introduction: High-risk Human Papillomavirus (HR HPV) infection is known to be linked to cervical cancer, with molecular biology tests being an important tool in diagnosis. Objective: This study is aimed to quantify the prevalence of HPV infection in women from the Southern part of the State of Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil, correlating factors associated with the development of precursor lesions and of cervical cancer. Methods: 643 women were enrolled in the study, by filling out a standardized questionnaire and undergoing cytology, colposcopy, and HR HPV Hybrid Capture 2 (HC2) tests. Results: Most patients were aged between 20 to 39 years (70.6%), this decreased the percentage of smokers from 23% to 11%. The average age of sexual debut through the period studied was of 18 years old. HR HPV prevalence was correlated with younger ages, with fewer patients infected by HR HPV when they were older at first sexual activity. Almost 70% prevalence of infection was observed in women who had 4 or more sexual partners. Altered cytology and colposcopy results had significantly higher rates of HR HPV infection. 334 women were referred for biopsy. Of those, 321 had altered colposcopy results and cytopathology of ASC-US/AGC-US, LSILs and HSILs, with 231 biopsies performed by the study. None of the results indicated cervical cancer. HC2 showed higher specificity than cytology, with high positive and negative prediction values (49.8% and 78.6%, respectively).Conclusion: The inclusion of HR HPV testing in screening programs in Brazil, according to international policies, will lead to fewer biopsies in women without infection and increased interval between screenings.