The word ‘cancer’ is a scary one. More than the illness, it is the treatment (particularly chemotherapy) and its side-effects that scares many of us. As many doctors have pointed out, early detection of cancer can help curtail the spread of the illness with less intensive medical intervention.
One cancer we need to watch out for is cervical cancer. Almost 27% of all cervical cancer cases in the world are detected in India. Moreover, in India, 1 in 7 women is affected by, and about 200 women die every hour, from cervical cancer.
So, what is cervical cancer? The cervix refers to the mouth or opening of the uterus. Cancerous cells that develop at this tip cause cervical cancer. The condition is propelled by contracting a virus called ‘Human papillomavirus’ or ‘HPV’, which slowly develops into cancer.
Patients diagnosed with cervical cancer are divided into 3 categories: Mild, Moderate and Severe. Patients who fall in the first bracket have a 100% chance of reversing the cancer. To do so, they have to undergo a procedure to remove the cancerous tissue. Patients who are moderately affected might need to undergo a hysterectomy (removal of the uterus) or cervical clean-up. For patients severely affected by cervical cancer or HPV, chemotherapy and radiotherapy might be the main choice of treatment.
What makes cervical cancer dangerous is that there are no obvious symptoms like fever, pain or swelling. In some cases, pelvic pain, lower back pain and unusual vaginal discharge may be indicative warnings. However, many people who contract cervical cancer are unaware of it until it reaches an advanced stage.
The best way to find out if a woman has cervical cancer is through a pap smear. In this method, the doctor takes a small tissue sample from the cervix and sends it to a pathologist to examine it for the presence of cancerous cells. We doctors recommend women above the age of 30 to undergo a pap smear once every three years, and women over 40 to get a pap smear every year.
So, who is at risk of cervical cancer? As this virus is sexually transmitted, women who have multiple sexual partners are at higher risk. Furthermore, individuals who have lower immunity (due to heavy smoking, alcohol consumption or substance abuse) or who are immunocompromised (due to intense medical treatment or a transplant) face a higher risk.
To avoid contracting cervical cancer, it would be best to avoid sexual relations with multiple partners, and to use protection while having sex. Furthermore, cutting down on smoking, alcohol consumption of substance abuse can help to keep a person’s immune system healthy. You can also get vaccinated against the HPV virus. The vaccine comes in Quadrivalent and Bivalent types, and is effective against four variants of the HPV virus. The vaccine can be taken by women from the age of 9 to 45. The vaccine is the best way to safeguard ourselves against HPV, so speak to your doctor about it. After all, prevention is always better than cure.
