Cervical Cancer: The Best Form of Prevention Is To Be Informed And Aware

This year alone approximately 12,360 documented new cases of cervical cancer in the United States and 4,020 deaths according to National Cancer Institute (“Cervical Cancer”, 2014). Cervical cancer is a slow growing cancer that grows in the tissues of the cervix (an organ that connects the uterus and vagina). The disease is predominantly caused by the human papillomavirus infection (HPV). According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, the HPV virus is so common that nearly all sexually active women and men get it at some point in their lives. Many types of HPV exist, some causing genital warts and potentially cervical cancer. Individuals can get HPV by having unprotected genital to genital touching, oral, vaginal, or anal sex. Anyone who is sexually active can get HPV, and can develop symptoms years after they had sex with someone who is infected, making it difficult to know when they first became infected.

Getting a cervical cancer screening with a Pap Smear can enable a practitioner to detect early signs of cervical cancer by allowing identification of precancerous lesions (USPSTF, 2016a). Early detection can decrease the incidence of cervical cancer and, ultimately, reduce mortality rates related to cervical cancer (USPSTF, 2016a).

Cervical cancer is when there are malignant cells present in the cervix; it is developed in the lining of the cervix. A cervix is a narrow opening located at the bottom of the uterus that leads into the vagina. Cervical cancer mostly affects women between the ages of 40 and 55. This cancer can be prevented by screening for precancerous cells, and it can also be cured if it is detected at an early stage. Over the past few decades the number of cervical cancer cases has declined dramatically due to a more widespread screening of the disease. Today, it is estimated that 10,000 new

Cervical Cancer Early Detection Program Journal of Women’s Health 20(10):1479-84 doi: 10.1089/jwh.2010.2530. Epub 2011 Jul 20

Almost all cervical carcinomas are caused by Human papillomavirus (HPV). Cervical cancer can be a life-threating disease. However, over recent years the occurrence of cervical cancer has declined as well as the chance of dying from it. A huge contributing factor to this decline is the importance of a regular pap smear. A pap smear can find cervical pre-cancer before it turns into cancer. Recently, a vaccine for HPV, has been on the market, which provides close to a 100% protection against pre-cancer and general warts. HPV and cervical cancer are two disease that are closely related. However, each disease effects not only similar populations, but also different populations, as well as having its own signs and symptoms, detection procedures,

The symptoms of cervical cancer are not always obvious thus the introduction of NHS cervical screening programme. The aim of the NHS Cervical Screening Programme is prevent the number women who die from cervical cancer each year due to not having early diagnoses. Since the introduction of the programme, a report was done between the NHS Cervical Screening Programme and Trent Cancer Registry it found that “Incidence and mortality rates in England have fallen considerably over the past 20 years. During this period, incidence rates decreased by over a third and mortality rates reduced by 60%. Survival, following a diagnosis of cervical cancer has improved in England since the 1980’s from the 83% to 88%”. (NHS, 2012, pp. P10-11).

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Human papillomavirus (HPV) infects roughly 20 million individuals in the United States with 6.1 million new cases each year. There is no cure for HPV, only treatment for associated health problems. There are more than 30 strains of HPV that affect more than half of sexually active individuals in their lifetime. Public health risks involve several types of HPV leading to precancerous lesions and causing 70% of cervical cancer. Cervical cancer, the second most common cancer, affects many women globally. In the United States, nearly 10,000 women are diagnosed with cervical cancer annually and 3,700 of those women die. It has been reported by American Cancer Society that with early

Cervical cancer is the leading cause of cancerous death, in women, since 1950. Approximately 200,000 cervical cancer patients die each year in developing countries. Strains like HPV 16 and 18 cause about 70% of cervical cancer in women– one of the top causes of death in the world (WebMD, 2010, p.1). In the Unites States, about 10,000 women acquire the disease and 3,700 die annually Human Papilloma Virus (HPV) is directly associated as a cause of cervical cancer. This virus affects the skin and genital area and, in some cases, it can also infect the throat and mouth. Since the HPV is passed from one person to another through skin-to-skin or sexual contact, sexually active people are more prone to this virus. Merck

In US cervical cancer is ranked 13th most common cancer in women and 4th among women between 15 to 44 years.

Did you know there is more of a link between cervical cancer and HPV than smoking and lung cancer? Cervical cancer is currently the fourth most common cancer in women and the second leading cause of death from cancer in women. Along with those statistics, human papillomavirus is the most common sexually transmitted viral disease amongst men and women worldwide. The prevalence of women having a strain of HPV that ultimately leads to or increases the chance of cervical cancer is highly relatable. What is pathophysiology, signs, symptoms, prevention, and treatments of this ailment? You might ask will be covered in the next few pages of this paper.

Cervical cancer is formed in the tissues of the cervix, an organ that connects the uterus and the vagina. Virtually all cervical cancers are caused by Human papillomavirus (HPV) infections (Schiffman et. al., 2007). HPV is the most common sexually transmitted infection in the United States. According to the CDC, 75% of sexually active people aged 15-49 have the infection at some point in their lives. (CDC). Because HPV infection is usually asymptomatic, infected people do not know exactly when they get the infection. In most cases, the body is able to fight off the virus before any symptom. However, health problems such as genital warts and cancer may

“4,210 deaths have occurred with cervical cancer.”(cancer.net) 12,820 women in the U.S will be diagnosed. If the cancer has spread from the cervix to other parts it’s a five year survival rate is 17 percent. The 5 year survival rate tells you what percent of women live at least 5 years after the cancer is found. The 5 year survival rate for all women with cervical cancer is 68%. For white women, the 5 year survival rate are 69%. For african american women the survival rate is 57%. “More than 15% of cases of cervical cancer are found in women over 65.” “(key statistics)” In the United States, Hispanic women are most likely to get cervical cancer, followed by African Americans, Asians and Pacific Islanders and whites. American Indians and Alaskan natives have the lowest risk of cervical cancer in this country. Cervical cancer rates for women have gone up every year for women and if we don’t find better treatments we won’t get to point of curing this

Cervical cancer is one of the highly popular disease for the women. Different programmes has been made up to fight against this deadly disease. New Zealand has one of the best screening programmes in the world. The establishment of National Cervical Cancer Screening Programme in NZ in 1990 had reduced a significant number of 60% of women who develop cervical cancer and who die from it since it was built. More than 1 million New Zealander women are enrolled in this programme and 95 % are eligible. The Cervical Cancer screening programme aims to; informing women about the importance of having the cervical screening tests; promoting cervical screening tests on a regular basis to women aged 20–70; ensuring high-quality and culturally appropriate services; supporting women with abnormal tests; ensuring there is regular monitoring to see that the goals of the programme are being met. The NCSP also acknowledges the importance of the Treaty of Waitangi in providing a screening programme that is successful for all New Zealand women.

Cervical cancer malignant cancer of the cervix uteris or cervical area. It may present with vaginal bleeding but symptoms may be absent until the cancer is in its advanced stages, which has made cervical cancer the focus of intense screening efforts using the Pap smear. About 2.2 percent of women carry one of the 2 virus strains most likely to lead to cervical cancer. One of the symptoms of Cervical Cancer is very Unusual amount of discharge.

In the United States, it is one of the eight-most common cancer of women. According to researches, the data shows that Hispanic women are significantly more likely to be diagnosed with cervical cancer than the general population and their median age at diagnosis is 48. In 1998, about 12,800 women were diagnosed in the US and about 4,800 died. Among cancers of the female reproductive tract, it is less common than endometrial cancer and ovarian cancer. The rates of new cases in the United States was 7 per 100,000 women in 2004. Cervical cancer deaths decreased by approximately 74% in the