The Importance of the Awareness of Cervical Cancer
Kristina Emerson- For The Corner News
http://www.thecornernews.com/index.php/loveliest_village/comments/the-importance-of-the-awareness-of-cervical-cancer/
According to the National Cervical Cancer Coalition (NCCC), each year approximately 10,000 women learn that they have cervical cancer. This year nearly 4,000 of these women will die of an advanced form of this disease. These statistics alone prove how important is it for women to become aware of this cancer.
Cervical cancer is the second most common type of cancer for women worldwide. Yet, because it develops over time it is also one of the most preventable types of cancer. It is also the only cancer that is known to be primarily caused by a common virus, the Humanpapillomavirus (HPV).
“We just want women who would not normally think twice about cervical cancer to simply be aware,” said Noelle Stewart, clinical dietitian at the HealthPlus Fitness Center and the East Alabama Medical Clinic (EAMC) Cancer Center.
Studies show that certain things that could have been prevented cause this fatal disease. Some of these factors are closely linked to failure to receive a regular Pap test screening, HPV infection, certain sexual behaviors and disorders like HIV and AIDS.
After turning 21, every woman should get a Pap test at least every other year. In January one of NCCC’s news releases stated that “in 2010 more than half of the women diagnosed with cervical cancer either never had a Pap or were not screened in the last five years.”
“Awareness and vaccination are the main ways women can avoid having cervical cancer affect their lives,” said Amy Von Gillern, a senior in microbiology at Auburn University who has recently studied the disease.
Although Pap tests are the best way to detect cervical cancer, vaccines have the potential to protect women from the disease. HPV 16 and HPV 18 cause about 70 percent of cervical cancers. Gardasil is one of the leading vaccines that has been proven to be most effective against HPV strains.
“These vaccines represent a major advancement in women’s health and in cancer prevention. With these new tools, we may be able to help ensure no woman in the United States has to endure cervical cancer,” says Juan C. Felix, MD, chairman of the NCCC medical advisory panel and chief of OB/GYN pathology at the Women’s and Children’s Hospital, University of Southern California Keck School of Medicine. “We hope these vaccines will make cervical cancer a concern of the past.”
EAMC Cancer Center wants to make sure all women are aware of this information. To find out if you qualify for a free or low-cost mammogram and Pap test and where to get screened, call: (334) 206-5851. To learn even more about cervical cancer and the NCCC, visit their website at http://www.nccc-online.org.