[An epidemiological evaluation of the efficacy of mass screening for uterine cancer in Japan. The relationship between coverage rate of mass screening and reduction in death rate from uterine cancer].

To evaluate the efficacy of mass screening for uterine cancer, the relationship between the coverage rate of mass screening and the reduction in mortality rate from uterine cancer was analyzed. The percent change in the AADR (Age-adjusted death rate) from 1979-1983 to 1984-1988 were compared between the high coverage rate areas and the control areas with relatively lower coverage rates, and among the high coverage rate areas with varied coverage rates. The main results were: (a) the decreases of AADR from uterine cancer were greater in three groups of high coverage rate areas than in control areas with low coverage rates. (b) Among three groups of high coverage rate areas with variation in coverage rates (> or = 20%, > or = 30%, > or = 40%), the higher the coverage rate was, the greater was the percent reduction (-45.9%, -52.3%, -63.5%) of AADR. These results suggest that systematic mass screening may be effective in reducing mortality from uterine cancer.