Cervical cancer is a deadly disease with a 5 year survival rate of only 68%. It’s important we take it seriously. Signs to look out for are abnormal bleeding or discharge, painful sex, lower back pain or unintended weight loss, but it’s best to catch it before there are any symptoms at all.
Or, prevent it.
Nearly all cervical cancers are caused by HPV infections which can take decades to develop, often without symptoms. HPV or human papillomavirus is a sexually transmitted disease that commonly produces genital warts. It will infect 80% of us during our lifetimes and 14 million teens and adults are diagnosed with it each year.
Here at Miracle Orchids Medical Center we take your sexual health and cancer risk seriously. We recommend a two step plan of action for preventing HPV, cervical cancer and any other associated risks.
Vaccination:
Gardasil is an FDA approved HPV vaccine for people from ages 9 to 45. Ideally, it will be given before children are sexually active, usually at the ages of 11-12, but is used for adults as well. HPV vaccines cannot cure an existing infection but can prevent future infections of other cancer causing strains of the disease. It may also prevent sexual partners from spreading the virus to each other.
HPV vaccination works extremely well and has the potential to prevent more than 90% of HPV-attributable cancers.
- Since HPV vaccination was first recommended in 2006, infections with HPV types that cause most HPV cancers and genital warts have dropped over 80%.
- Fewer teens and young adults are getting genital warts.
- HPV vaccination has also reduced the number of cases of precancers of the cervix in young women.
- The protection provided by HPV vaccines lasts a long time. People who received HPV vaccines more than a decade ago are not showing evidence of decreased effectiveness.
Cervical Cancer Screenings:
Because early cervical cancer doesn’t cause symptoms, it’s vital that women have regular screenings, like pap tests, to detect any precancerous changes in the cervix..
We encourage you to make a commitment to women’s health screenings at recommended intervals throughout your life, starting at age 25. These screenings can save your life.
Additional Prevention Tips:
- Wait to have sex
- Limit your number of sexual partners
- Participate only in mutually monogamous relationships
- Use a condom – practice safe sex
Our goal is to support you in feeling empowered in maintaining your health and enjoying the gifts of being a woman through all phases of your life. If you have any concerns or are due for an annual women’s health screening, please give us a call.
Miracle Orchids Medical Center – Fountain Valley, CA – (714) 486-1228
