Talk Times with Tori: Cervical cancer awareness
Tori Ladd
Issue date: 2/3/10 Section: Life
Each year about 10,000 women are diagnosed with cervical cancer and about 3,700 women die from the disease in the United States alone, according to the National Cervical Cancer Coalition (NCCC).
Webster's Medical Dictionary says that cervical cancer is caused by the human papillomavirus (HPV). Although there are many different strands of HPV, only some the HPV strands can cause cervical cancer.
According to Medical News Today, yearly there are 473,000 new cases of cervical cancer and about 250,000 deaths due to cervical cancer in the world.
In emergent countries, cervical cancer continues to be the number one cause of death for women.
About 85 percent of those cases occur in low resource areas in the world and fewer than 5 percent of those women have never had a Pap test.
A Pap test is an examination consisting of the staining of cervical cells taken in a cervical or vaginal smear for the testing of exfoliated cells.
Eleven percent of women in the United States have also reported that they do not get Pap test screenings.
If caught in the early stage, cervical cancer is curable and the patient may still be able to have children after the treatment.
If the disease is found in the later stages, it can be removed by a hysterectomy removal of lymph nodes, ovaries and fallopian tubes, radiation therapy or chemotherapy. The latter treatments can leave patients unable to conceive children.
Cervical cancer can be detected during your regular pelvic exam.
Web MD list the symptoms of cervical cancer as:
-Bleeding from the vagina that is not normal, or a change in the menstrual cycle,
-Bleeding when something comes in contact with the cervix, such as during sex,
-Vaginal discharge tinged with blood.
As with other medical concerns ,you should contact a health professional if you are experiencing any of the symptoms or if you have any questions.
To prevent cervical cancer both genders can practice safe sex. Women can also get regular physical examinations and get the Food and Drug Association approved vaccination Gardasil.
According to Gardasil literature, Gardasil is the only cervical cancer vaccine that helps protect against four types of HPV (Types 6, 11, 16, and 18), the two types that cause 70 percent of cervical cancer cases.
The vaccine is for girls and young women from ages 9 to 26 and are administered by three shots over six months.
The NCCC says that a woman who does not have the Gardasil vaccination or does not get a Pap test yearly significantly increases chances of developing the disease.
NSU Health Services, Natchitoches Outpatient Clinic and Natchitoches Health Unit, along with the hospital and other private practices offer the Gardasil vaccination upon request.
Webster's Medical Dictionary says that cervical cancer is caused by the human papillomavirus (HPV). Although there are many different strands of HPV, only some the HPV strands can cause cervical cancer.
According to Medical News Today, yearly there are 473,000 new cases of cervical cancer and about 250,000 deaths due to cervical cancer in the world.
In emergent countries, cervical cancer continues to be the number one cause of death for women.
About 85 percent of those cases occur in low resource areas in the world and fewer than 5 percent of those women have never had a Pap test.
A Pap test is an examination consisting of the staining of cervical cells taken in a cervical or vaginal smear for the testing of exfoliated cells.
Eleven percent of women in the United States have also reported that they do not get Pap test screenings.
If caught in the early stage, cervical cancer is curable and the patient may still be able to have children after the treatment.
If the disease is found in the later stages, it can be removed by a hysterectomy removal of lymph nodes, ovaries and fallopian tubes, radiation therapy or chemotherapy. The latter treatments can leave patients unable to conceive children.
Cervical cancer can be detected during your regular pelvic exam.
Web MD list the symptoms of cervical cancer as:
-Bleeding from the vagina that is not normal, or a change in the menstrual cycle,
-Bleeding when something comes in contact with the cervix, such as during sex,
-Vaginal discharge tinged with blood.
As with other medical concerns ,you should contact a health professional if you are experiencing any of the symptoms or if you have any questions.
To prevent cervical cancer both genders can practice safe sex. Women can also get regular physical examinations and get the Food and Drug Association approved vaccination Gardasil.
According to Gardasil literature, Gardasil is the only cervical cancer vaccine that helps protect against four types of HPV (Types 6, 11, 16, and 18), the two types that cause 70 percent of cervical cancer cases.
The vaccine is for girls and young women from ages 9 to 26 and are administered by three shots over six months.
The NCCC says that a woman who does not have the Gardasil vaccination or does not get a Pap test yearly significantly increases chances of developing the disease.
NSU Health Services, Natchitoches Outpatient Clinic and Natchitoches Health Unit, along with the hospital and other private practices offer the Gardasil vaccination upon request.
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