Liquid-based Papanicolaou tests in endometrial carcinoma diagnosis: performance, error root cause analysis, and quality improvement.
Delayed diagnosis from false-negative Papanicolaou (Pap) tests can have tragic results. This study re-screened liquid-based Pap tests of women who were later diagnosed with endometrial carcinoma. Of the 27 rescreened samples, 16 were recategorized to positive. Through root cause analysis, latent and active failures were identified, and several quality improvement initiatives were implemented.