Cancer - Cervical

Cervical cancer is a malignancy of the cervix. Worldwide, it is the second-most common cancer of women. 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 utilizing the Pap smear. Most scientific studies have found that human papillomavirus (HPV) infection is responsible for more than 90% of the cases of cervical cancer. According to a survey of 3,076 women 18 to 75 years of age, awareness about human papillomavirus (HPV) infection and its link to cervical cancer is relatively low among American women. In 2006 an estimated 10,000 women in the United States will be diagnosed with this type of cancer and nearly 4,000 will die from it. Having several sexual partners is a major risk factor for developing HPV. Although most HPV infections clear up on their own, the infections could increase to major abnormalities or cervical cancer. Doctors can test samples of cervical cells to determine types of HPV that may be present. In some cases, HPV clears up on its own, and in some, there were no signs until it was too late, and cervical cancer developed.

Treatment consists of surgery in early stages and chemotherapy and radiotherapy in advanced stages of the disease. An effective vaccine, the HPV vaccine, for the two most common strains of HPV has recently been licenced.

...More at Wikipedia  

Related Links:

• National Cancer Institute
• US National Library of Medicine
• Mayo Clinic

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