PREVENTING CERVICAL CANCER

Cervical cancer is the formation of abnormal cancerous cells in the lining of the cervix. The cervix is the lowest part of the uterus (womb). Cervical cancers do not form suddenly. Normal cervical cells gradually develop pre-cancerous changes that later can become cancer. These changes are most often caused by the HPV virus. The process of changing cervical cells takes several years. In some cases, the pre-cancerous cells will not become cancer cells and may even go away without treatment. However, there is no way to be sure what cells resolve and what cells become cancerous.

How do you prevent cervical cancer? The best way is living a chaste lifestyle. As stated previously, most cervical cancers are caused by several types of HPV. HPV is passed by skin to skin contact with any HPV infected area of the body. These areas include skin of the genital or anal areas. Therefore abstinence from sexual intercourse will help but is not quite enough. Any skin to skin contact in those regions (i.e. foreplay) can lead to an HPV infection. It is for this reason that condoms do not prevent the transfer of HPV. Please remember that your partner may have an HPV infection without knowing it as it is often symptomless. It is truly best to protect yourself from cervical cancers and other diseases by refraining from sexual activity until marriage. This applies to men and women.

The second way to prevent cervical cancer is early detection. Including a pap smear as part of a regular physical after age 21 (earlier if you are sexually active at a younger age) can prevent cervical cancer. As it generally takes years for the cells to become cervical cancers cells, early detection by routine pap smears can lead to the removal of pre-cancer cells from the cervix, thereby preventing cervical cancer.