Cervical Cancer: Learn More Get Needed Help

Its the month for Cervical cancer Awareness

Malignancy: Cervical cancer is a malignant tumour that starts in the cells of the cervix it, usually develops slowly over time.

Eventually, the abnormal cells may become cancer cells and start to grow and spread more deeply into the cervix and to surrounding areas.

Viral Linkage: Cervical cancer is one of the most common cancers that affect a woman’s reproductive organs. Most cervical cancers are caused by a virus called human papillomavirus or (HPV) a sexually transmitted infection. Most adults have been infected with HPV at some point in time.

HPV spreads through skin-to-skin contact with any infected part of the body and not just during intercourse. However not all types of HPV cause cervical cancer. Some of them cause genital warts, while other types may not cause any problems.

Early detection: The Pap test is the best way to find cervical cell changes that can lead to cervical cancer. The test can detect changes in cervical cells long before they turn into cancer. As with most cancers, early identification is critical.

Most women with precancerous changes of the cervix that are identified and diagnosed early have a very high cure rate; are successfully treated and don”t develop cancer.

Diagnosis: Personal history, lab tests and biopsies are important tools in coming up with a diagnosis. A personal history is also taken of your symptoms. Typically, symptoms of cervical cancer can include complaints of painful sex, vaginal bleeding and discharge.

If a Pap test returns abnormal results, you’ll likely have a biopsy taken from the cervix.

Staging: A stage system describes how far cancer has spread. The most common staging system for cervical cancer, tells if cancer cells have spread within the cervix or to other parts of the body. Each stage is given a number of Stages 1 to 4.

Generally, the higher the number, the more cancer has spread.

Treatment: Knowing the stage helps to determine the best treatment for a better prognosis. The treatment for cervical cancer includes several options.

A treatment plan will be based on your general health, your age and if you desire future childbearing and the stage of cancer. You may have one or more treatments or a combination of different treatments.

Interventions: Surgery, such as a removal of pelvic lymph nodes removal of ovaries even fallopian tubes or a hysterectomy may be prescribed. Radiation therapy may be used to treat any stage of cervical cancer.

Chemotherapy may be prescribed and implemented at the same time as radiation therapy this makes the cancer cells more sensitive to radiation.

A post-treatment approach is regular follow-up visits for about three years. You can reduce your risk of cervical cancer by taking measures to prevent HPV infection. Using a condom every time you have sex reduces your risk of contracting HPV.