THURSDAY, April 23 (HealthDay News) -- Cervical cancer screening should continue for women older than 50 -- even if they've had several negative test results -- because they have a similar level of risk as younger women, European researchers contend.

Previous studies have suggested there's little benefit in repeating smear tests in women 60 to 65 years old whose previous tests have been normal, and some experts have suggested that the age limit for the screening test should be lowered to 50.

But the new study, published online in BMJ, challenges that view.

Researchers analyzed the cervical cancer registry in The Netherlands and identified 219,000 women ages 45 to 54 and 445,000 women ages 30 to 44 who'd had three consecutive negative smear tests. During a follow-up period of 10 years, the incidence of cervical cancer was 41 per 100,000 among the younger women and 36 per 100,000 among the older women.

This indicates, the researchers said, that among women who've had regular screenings with normal results, age does not affect the risk of developing cervical cancer. Therefore, it would not be consistent to stop screening older women without relaxing the screening policy for younger women with similar screening histories, they said.

Bjorn Strander, director of cervical cancer screening at Sahlgren's University Hospital in Sweden, wrote in an accompanying editorial that new findings about invasive cancer in age groups above screening cutoff points need to be closely monitored, and experts should be ready to adjust screening ages as more information becomes available.

Modern computer technology makes it possible to issue personalized screening invitations to individuals, he noted. That would enable a shift of resources away from women who would not benefit from additional cervical cancer screening to those who would benefit, Strander said.

More information

The U.S. National Women's Health Information Center has more about cervical cancer.

THURSDAY, April 23 (HealthDay News) -- Although the rate of complications during pregnancy has remained unchanged since 1993, the percentage of pregnant women with preexisting conditions, such as high blood pressure and diabetes, has increased, a new study finds.

The scientists speculated that the increase was driven by more obese women and more older women having babies. Both obesity and the mother's age have been linked to increased complications during pregnancy and delivery, according to researchers from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

"There's the good news and the bad news," said study co-author Dr. William Callaghan, a senior scientist in the CDC's Maternal and Infant Health Branch in the Division of Reproductive Health. "The good news is that we are seeing some improvements. The bad news is that some of the traditional complications of pregnancy -- hemorrhage and hypertension -- are increasing."

Why these problems are on the rise is not clear, Callaghan said. "It would be great to understand why and, to the extent they are preventable, prevent them," he said.

The report is published in the May issue of Obstetrics & Gynecology.

For the study, Callaghan and his CDC colleagues used data from the National Hospital Discharge Survey to estimate the rate of pregnancy and delivery complications, including preexisting medical conditions and cesarean delivery. They compared data from 2001 to 2005 with data from 1993 to 1997.

They found that the overall rate of delivery complications held steady at 28.6 percent. However, the prevalence of preexisting medical conditions among women delivering infants increased, from 4.1 percent to 4.9 percent.

High blood pressure, preeclampsia, diabetes, asthma and bleeding after delivery all increased, raising concern among the researchers. "This is something we are not going to see go away," Callaghan said.

"There is no question hypertension is increasing," he said. "Again, it is unclear exactly why. We know it is associated with older women, we know it is associated with first pregnancy and we know that there are more older women having first pregnancies."

But obesity, which is also associated with high blood pressure, is increasing and may be a reason as well, he said.

At the same time, the rate of lacerations from episiotomy decreased, the study found. This may have something to do with the increasing number of cesarean deliveries, Callaghan said.

The rate of cesarean delivery increased, from 21.8 percent from 1993 to 1997 to 28.3 percent from 2001 to 2005, the researchers reported. The reason for this increase is also unknown, Callaghan said.

"It may reflect an increase in the risk status of women who are getting pregnant, especially older women and women who are coming into pregnancy with chronic diseases," he said. "It also reflects changes in practice patterns and how physicians make decisions about when a cesarean is warranted."

Dr. Edmund F. Funai, chief of obstetrics at Yale University School of Medicine, said he thinks the authors were "spot-on in their conclusions."

"While studies derived from administrative data must be interpreted with caution, it is very true that more births are occurring in older women than ever before," Funai said. "One natural byproduct of aging is the likelihood of accruing chronic disease diagnoses, such as hypertension. Compounding this fact is the rise in the prevalence of obesity, which itself is associated with morbidities such as hypertension and diabetes. The effect of aging and obesity is also likely synergistic."

However, classifying cesarean delivery as morbidity does not seem to be seem relevant any longer, Funai said.

"Many patients and providers are more interested in being able to schedule a birth, rather than awaiting spontaneous labor," he said. "Also, an increasing number of women seem to be most interested in maximizing fetal safety via cesarean, even if it means a disproportionate maternal risk as a trade-off. This is a cultural shift among patients that is still evolving."

More information

The U.S. National Women's Health Information Center has more on childbirth.

WEDNESDAY, April 22 (HealthDay News) -- Soy isoflavones don't increase breast density, a new study finds.

That's good news because it's believed that increased breast density is associated with a higher risk of breast cancer. A number of studies have suggested that dietary factors, including isoflavones (estrogen-like plant compounds) might increase breast density. However, there have been mixed findings about the link between isoflavone intake and breast density, according to background information in the new study.

It included 358 postmenopausal women who averaged 55 years old. Each day for two years, they took either a placebo or one of two dosages -- 80 milligrams or 120 milligrams -- of soy isoflavones, contained in soy-germ isoflavone tablets. The soy dosage levels are equivalent to the amount of isoflavones provided in two to four cups of soy milk.

Breast tissue assessments, done during and at the end of the study, indicated that soy isoflavone consumption had no effect on any breast tissue measurement, including density. The findings did not change after the authors factored in age and obesity.

"These findings offer reassurance that isoflavones do not act like hormone replacement medication on breast density," the researchers concluded.

The study appears in the May issue of the Journal of Nutrition.

More information

The U.S. National Cancer Institute has more about breast cancer risk.

WEDNESDAY, April 22 (HealthDay News) -- Older women using hormone replacement therapy appear to have a 28 percent reduction in their risk of developing colorectal cancer, a new study found.

But researchers don't yet know why the link seems to exist. And the main message to women remains the same: Take hormone replacement therapy at the lowest dose possible for the shortest period of time possible and only for menopausal symptoms such as hot flashes.

"This is not a primary treatment indication for hormone therapy," said Dr. James Liu, chairman of the department of obstetrics and gynecology at University Hospitals MacDonald Women's Hospital in Cleveland. "If a woman happens to be on the therapy [for menopausal symptoms] this could be a benefit but it's not a reason to stay or start the therapy."

The study, by researchers at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn., was to be presented Wednesday at the annual meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research, in Denver.

This is not the first time researchers have seen an association between hormone replacement therapy (HRT) and a lower risk of colon cancer.

"This just confirms what we knew before," said Dr. Yiwu Huang, associate program director of hematology and medical oncology at Maimonides Cancer Center in New York City.

The link was first picked up in 2002 when the results of the landmark Women's Health Initiative were first announced. That study found a 40 percent reduced colon cancer risk in women taking combined estrogen and progestin. The risk reduction disappeared, however, when women stopped taking their therapy, Liu said.

The authors of the new study looked at more than 37,000 Iowa women, who ranged in age from 55 to 69 at the start of the study in 1986. Participants had completed questionnaires on oral contraceptive and hormone therapy use. The researchers were able to analyze colorectal cancer tissues in 40 percent of the women.

There was no relationship between use of oral contraceptives and colorectal cancer.

Dr. David Limsui, lead author of the study and a fellow in the department of gastroenterology at the Mayo Clinic, said that "the ideal situation would be that we find the pathway by which estrogen may protect against colorectal cancer risk and find a drug or a therapy that can provide protection through that pathway without the adverse effects of estrogen. We need to figure out how and why."

Hormone replacement therapy is still taken by large numbers of women to relieve the symptoms of menopause -- despite evidence of various health risks, including heightened odds for breast cancer and stroke.

More information

The U.S. National Cancer Institute has more on colorectal cancer.