There Are More Ways Now Than Ever To Prevent Cervical Cancer

More than 13,000 American women were diagnosed with cervical cancer in 2018. More than 4,000 died from the disease that year. Those are tragic facts for lots of reasons, chief among them being that cervical cancer is often preventable.

The good news is, there’s more ways to prevent cervical cancer than ever.

Let’s start with a quick overview of what cervical cancer is and what causes it. The cervix is the tip of the uterus, located at the back of the vagina. Because of that location, cervical tissue is exposed to sexually transmitted microorganisms, with one such organism in particular–the human papilloma virus–responsible for many cases of cervical cancer. The virus can lead to chronic infections that, in turn, cause cervical cells to mutate into cancer cells.

In the old days, the main way to prevent cervical cancer was to conduct pap smears. A clinician would collect scrapings from the cervix, and a pathologist would examine the cells under a microscope to see if any were beginning to transform into cancer. Caught early enough, these precancerous cells could be destroyed before doing any damage.

Today, we have more options, which is great news for women hoping to avoid this disease.

First and foremost, there’s HPV vaccines. Prevent viral infections from ever establishing themselves, and you’ve dramatically reduced the risk of developing cervical cancer.

In addition, women can now be tested for HPV, specifically for the strains of HPV known to increase the risk of cervical cancer.

Recently, the United States Preventive Services Task Force endorsed multiple ways to screen women for cervical cancer. They continue to endorse the old-fashioned method: pap smears every three years from age 25 to 65 in women at average risk for the disease. (Importantly, women with a history of sexually transmitted infections should generally receive more frequent screenings. If you’re not sure whether your risk is average, ask your doctor.)

The task force also endorsed a strategy some women will probably prefer:

• Pap smears every three years from 25 to 29
• Followed by HPV testing every five years until age 65 - plus or minus pap smears every five years

This less frequent testing schedule offers women a less intrusive way of preventing cervical cancer.

The bottom line is clear. All women aged 25 to 65 should be screened for cervical cancer. And now these women can talk with their doctors about the screening approach they prefer to follow.

With increased screening, we should see fewer women succumb to this awful disease.