INTERVENTION AND TREATMENT OF CERVICAL CANCER
In this decade, 2 million women will be diagnosed with cervical cancer and 500,000 will lose their lives.
Cervical cancer is the third most common cancer among Latino women.1 In all counties except Dade county, Latino women have shown higher incidences of cervical cancer. In Los Angeles, rates have been more than twice that of whites.2, 3 These rates are even higher for immigrant women than for Latino women born in the United States.
The rates of cervical cancer are not accurate due to lack of information from minority groups such as Latinos. As a result, reported incidence rates do not reflect the population at large. Data on cervical cancer thus needs to be examined with caution. Methods of collecting data need to be improved keeping the demographics of the population in mind. There is a lot of research still being done on how to access more accurate data, inform women and reduce their incidence of cervical cancer. In the past few years, minority groups have been the group of interest and focus since most present data reflects White women.
Health care institutions have begun program reformation and implementation to better educate minority groups on specific health care issues. We need to continue improving our communication with minority groups. They need to learn more about their susceptibilities and ways to reduce the risk of getting cervical cancer. The preventive methods are there. We, however, need to find a ways of communicating them and making them accessible to more women.
Prevention activities can be categorized at three levels: primary, secondary and tertiary. Primary prevention includes identifying individual risk factors. Secondary prevention includes the necessary routine screenings regularly. Tertiary prevention includes the adequate treatment needed in order to halt the disease, decrease disability, and/or prevent further complications or death.4
Symptoms, Risks and Effects of Cervical Cancer
Latina Social, Cultural, and Behavioral Risk Factors for Cervical Cancer
SECONDARY INTERVENTION
Screening test for cervical cancer
Pap smear - principal test
cervicography - a photograph of the cervix examined for atypical lesions.
colposcopy - examination of cervix under magnification, washing where suspicious lesions are biopsied, with acetic acid.
HPV (Human Papillomavirus) infection testing. More information on screenings from the University of Pennsylvania.
TERTIARY INTERVENTION
The survival or reduced morbidity due to cervical cancer is markedly affected by the extent and stage of disease at the time of diagnosis.
Treatment for cancer of the cervix may depend on the stage of the disease, size of tumor, patient's age, overall condition and desire to have children.
The five-year survival rate is 90% effective for women at stage 0 and only 40% effective for stage III-IV.5
Stage 0
Cervical cancer is called carcinoma in situ (localized cancer that has not yet spread out). The abnormal cells are found only in the layers of the cells lining the cervix. They do not invade the deeper tissues of the cervix.
Stage I
Stage IA: cancer cells are found in small amount only visible under a microscope and only found deep in the tissues of the cervix. Stage IB: cancer has begun spreading to tissue around the cervix.
Stage II
Cancer has spread to nearby tissue yet it is still in the pelvic area. Stage IIA: Cancer has spread beyond the cervix to the upper 2/3 of the vagina.
Stage IIB: Cancer has spread to tissue around the cervix.
Stage III
Cancer has spread throughout the pelvic area. Cancer cells may have spread to the lower part of the vagina. The cells also have spread to block the tubes that connect the kidneys with the bladder.
Stage IV
Cancer can spread to other parts of the body. Stage IVA: Cancer has spread to the bladder or rectum
Stage IVB: Cancer has spread to faraway organs such as the lungs.
You can calculate your own risk at the Women's Cancer Network.
TREATMENT STAGES
TREATMENT EXPLANATION:
- Surgery (removing the cancer in an operation)
- Radiation therapy (using high-dose x-rays or high-energy)
- Chemotherapy (using drugs to kill the cancer)
TYPES OF SURGERY: (for localized cancer)
- Cryosurgery - kills the cancer by freezing it
- Laser surgery - the use of narrow beam of intense light to kill cancerous cells.
OPERATIONS TO REMOVE THE CANCER:
