What Do You Need to Know About HPV and Cervical Cancer?

Human papillomavirus is considered to be the trigger of cervical cancer. It was observed in approximately 99% of cervical cancers. Scientists distinguish near 100 types of HPV, but almost all of them are low risk and they can’t lead to cervical cancer. But there are two types of HPV (HPV-16 and HPV-18) that are pointed out as high-risk and are responsible for most cases of cervical cancer or abnormalities.

The symptoms of cervical cancer
Pre-cancerous changes in cervical cells and early cervical cancer usually don’t cause symptoms. If you feel any changes in the pelvic area, it can be related to many diseases. The most advanced cases of cervical cancer can manifest themselves through:

Bleeding after sexual intercourse, douching, pelvic examination, or between menstruations
Pelvic pain that is not related to your menstrual cycle
Pain during urination
Severe or unusual discharge that may be watery, thick, and possibly have an unpleasant odor

What is Pap smear?
A Pap smear (it is also called a Pap test) is a method for examining cells received from the cervix (lower end of the uterus). The main goal of the Pap test is to identify abnormal changes in the cells that may occur as a result of cervical cancer or precancerous conditions.

How to diagnose cervical cancer?
A Pap test is considered to be a more exact way to discover precancerous or cancerous conditions. It is also recommended to take an HPV test. This test helps to find out if the woman has high-risk HPV. But the HPV test is not able to show whether the virus is new or permanent. But it’s results will help you and your doctor settle the proper monitoring times and intervals for cervical biopsy.

How to understand abnormal results?
The doctor may represent the results of the Pap test as “abnormal”. Cells on the cervical surface sometimes seem abnormal, but it doesn’t mean that they are cancerous. A woman may ask her doctor for specific information about the results of the Pap test and what this result means.

When is the best time to take the Pap test?
It is better to talk with your doctors about when and how often to take a Pap test. It is recommended to take a Pap test every three years, with the first test no earlier than three years after the first sexual intercourse. But it should be performed for the first time no later than at the age of 21. It is recommended to wait approximately three years after the first sex in order to avoid unnecessary treatment. Cervical cancer is a slowly developed disease and it’s actually rare for young women.

How to prevent the development of cervical cancer?
You should know that cervical cancer needs a lot of time to develop and this makes it the most preventable type of cancer. The survival rate is about 100% in the case of early diagnosis. Pap test is the most reliable way to defend yourself from cervical cancer. It helps to identify the precancerous condition, so the regular testing will keep you on the safe side.

How to treat cervical cancer?
Treatment of cervical cancer depends on the stage of the disease. Fortunately, most patients with cervical cancer are diagnosed with early stages in the United States. For women with the earliest stage of cervical cancer, it is recommended to perform a simple hysterectomy. The treatment for patients with later stages of the lesion consists of a radical hysterectomy with bilateral dissection of the pelvic lymph node or radiation therapy. But these methods will work with small lesions when the cells haven’t metastasized.