When starting a cervical cancer prevention and control programme, cytology-based screening is not advisable, as sensitivity of this methodology is low and health systems requirements to ensure good quality and adequate coverage are high. If appropriate, a combination of different screening modalities followed by treatment may be used depending on the geographical area, infrastructure and human resource capacity in the country. It is essential that programme managers and decision-makers are well-informed to assess strengths and weaknesses of the different screening methods before their introduction and use
