Screening, Vaccines Fight Cervical Cancer

Augusta, Ga. – Cervical cancer used to be one of the most common causes of cancer death for American women, according to the American Cancer Society. However, between 1955 and 1992, the death rate declined significantly due to an increase in cervical cancer screenings.

The traditional screening method for women is the Pap test, a procedure in which cells are scraped from the cervix for examination under a microscope. This magnified look at the cells can uncover conditions such as infection or inflammation. But more importantly, the Pap test can detect cancer or changes that may lead to cancer.

More recently, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved two vaccines that are safe and effective in the prevention of HPV (human papillomaviruses): Gardasil® and Cervarix.® These vaccines are highly effective in preventing persistent infections with HPV types 16 and 18, two high-risk HPVs that cause nearly 70 percent of cervical cancers. The Gardasil vaccine also prevents infection with HPV types 6 and 11, which cause about 90 percent of genital warts, or papillomas. In addition, there is initial evidence that the Cervarix vaccine provides partial protection against a few other HPV types that can cause cancer.

In general, cervical cancer tends to occur in midlife, with most cases found in women younger than 50. However, 20 percent of women diagnosed are over age 65. In the United States, cervical cancer occurs most often in Hispanic women; at a rate that is more than twice what is seen in non-Hispanic white women. African-American women develop cervical cancer about twice as often as non-Hispanic white women.

As with other cancers, the sooner it is suspected or discovered, the better the chances for successful treatment. Still, more than 4,000 cervical cancer cases diagnosed in 2010 ...