China has met its goal to raise the national cervical cancer screening rate above 50 percent ahead of schedule, but experts say more efforts are needed to boost awareness and improve healthcare access in rural areas to close the urban-rural gap.

The national cervical cancer screening rate — defined as the percentage of women who have undergone at least one screening in their lifetime — reached 51.5 percent among women age 35 to 64 from 2023 to 2024, according to a study published by the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention. That marks a significant rise from 36.8 percent between 2018 and 2019.

The screening rate was 57.9 percent among women age 35 to 44 and 36.8 percent among those age 20 and older, the study found. Researchers analyzed data from nearly 97,000 women across all 31 provincial-level regions in China.

"Our findings suggest that China as a whole has already achieved the 2025 target of screening 50 percent of women age 35 to 64 years by 2024," the study said.

Cervical cancer is the fourth most common cancer among women worldwide, with about 660,000 new cases and 350,000 deaths reported in 2022. Increasing screenings is considered one of the three key strategies for eliminating the disease, alongside expanding HPV vaccinations and improving access to treatment.

China accounts for more than 18 percent of the global disease burden, according to health officials. A national action plan released in 2023 set a goal of increasing the screening rate to 50 percent by 2025 and 70 percent by 2030.

While only three provincial-level regions reached the 50 percent threshold five years ago, the study found that half of all regions — mostly in the eastern, southern and central parts of China — have now surpassed the 2025 target.

"This marked improvement underscores the effectiveness of implementing the free national screening program across diverse geographical regions," the study said.

Still, the screening rate in rural areas remains lower at 48.2 percent, with northeastern China reporting just 33.8 percent.

"The study demonstrates that women in rural areas, as well as those with low incomes, limited education or unemployment, are less likely to access cervical cancer screening services, thus requiring enhanced governmental attention and intervention," it said.

To further boost screening coverage, the study recommended increased policy and financial support, stronger health education initiatives and improved healthcare access in rural and northeastern regions.

China launched a national free screening program in 2009, providing 280 million screenings for women age 35 to 64 and detecting 902,000 cases of cervical cancer or precancerous lesions, according to Shen Haiping, director of the National Health Commission's maternal and child health department.

Zhu Lan, head of the obstetrics and gynecology department at Peking Union Medical College Hospital, said reducing cervical cancer rates is particularly challenging in less-developed regions due to low health awareness, transportation barriers and extreme weather.

With a shortage of trained healthcare workers in these areas, she suggested using artificial intelligence tools to train local medical professionals and enhance both screening coverage and accuracy.

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