Cervical cancer is not a cancer Dr. Amanda Von Hoene, an OB-GYN in St. Elizabeth Physicians’ Cold Spring office, would consider common, but it is a cancer that can prove deadly if not caught early.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, cervical cancer occurs most frequently in women over age 30. Each year, in fact, around 12,000 women in the United States are diagnosed with it and nearly 4,000 die from it.
Von Hoene wishes more women knew two things about cervical cancer:
1) There usually aren’t any warning signs.
Most often, the first – and only – sign of cervical cancer is an abnormal Pap smear.
When cervical cancer advances, it can cause bleeding or discharge from the vagina that isn’t normal for you, such as bleeding after sex. Other symptoms as the disease advances, according to the Cleveland Clinic, include menstrual periods that are heavier or last longer than normal, difficult or painful urination (sometimes with blood in the urine), diarrhea, pain or bleeding from the rectum, fatigue and weight loss, and a dull backache or swelling of the legs.
2) Prevention is key.
Because there typically aren’t any signs that could clue you in to the presence of cervical cancer, prevention is critical.
Talk to your doctor about getting the vaccine to prevent human papillomavirus (HPV) ““ a common virus that can be spread during sex ““ because almost all cervical cancers are caused by HPV.
Also, make sure you schedule annual Pap smear screenings and, if one shows an abnormality, you follow up on it.
“The worst cases are among people who have had an abnormal Pap and then don’t follow up on it for five years,” Von Hoene said. “They’ll come in bleeding at that point with a cervical mass.”
Finally, don’t smoke.
The risk for cervical cancer is higher among smokers, although the evidence isn’t clear as to why. Thinking about quitting? Click the button below to learn more.
Treatment options for cervical cancer include radiation, chemotherapy and surgery. The option you and your health care provider choose likely will be based on the stage of the disease and your desire to have future children, Von Hoene said.
