Compass is a large scale randomised controlled trial of alternate methods of cervical screening in a heavily HPV-vaccinated population in Australia. It is also designed as sentinel experience for the transition of the National Cervical Screening Program in Australia which will transition in 2017 to 5-yearly primary HPV screening.
In Compass, women aged 25-69 years in the state of Victoria are randomised to 5-yearly HPV vs. 2.5 yearly liquid-based cytology (LBC) screening. Women presenting for screening or follow-up are consented by a primary practitioner and an LBC sample is taken, with randomization occurring once the sample is received by the laboratory. Compass has two phases: Phase I (pilot) involves 5,000 women recruited from Oct 2013 - Nov 2014, and the main trial of 121,000 women commenced recruitment in Jan 2015. Preliminary results will be presented.
Compass is already providing critical information on primary HPV screening in a vaccinated population, including data on test positivity rates, CIN2+ and CIN3+ disease detection rates, and colposcopy referral rates for primary HPV and cytology screening, in cohorts offered vaccination and in older unvaccinated cohorts. This trial will provide critical comparative information on HPV vs. cytology screening in vaccinated women.