Women may no longer be forced to rely on white-knuckling their way through annual pap smears as part of cervical cancer screening. A urine test appears to be a viable alternative to the traditional pap smear, a new analysis shows.

Researchers conducted a meta-analysis using 14 previous studies to determine the accuracy and effectiveness of urine tests to detect the presence of HPV DNA. They found the test identified the virus correctly 87 percent of the time.

The test correctly identified the two strains of the virus that represent the highest risk of cervical cancer 73 percent of the time.

Test accuracy was also improved when the test was administered during the first urination of the day. It is believed by researchers that this increased accuracy was due to the higher concentration of DNA available in urine first thing in the morning.

HPV is one of the leading causes of cervical cancers. There is a vaccine available that is meant to guard against some of the higher risk strains, but the vaccine does not protect against them all. Costs and attitudes about vaccines and sex often hinder the delivery of the vaccine, which is recommended in children starting at age 11.

Other than the vaccines, the pap smear has historically been the only means of screening for the HPV virus. However, pap smears are invasive, uncomfortable and, depending on various socioeconomic factors, not always readily available.

But researchers think that the use of the urine test could encourage women to more actively screen for the disease. It’s low cost, non-invasive approach coupled with the ability to self-administer the test make it a strong candidate for areas where health care infrastructures are not solidly formed or where income is low enough to place extra burden on accessing pap smears.

Experts say that more testing needs to be done to reinforce the outcome of this meta-analysis. Variations in testing methods for the studies examined could have altered the outcome of the data, the study says.