Females' Terror: Cervical Cancer

Our body is sometimes a mystery so we should learn about it especially diseases that can affect us and our body. Photo retrieved from photobooths.co.uk

The reproductive system consists of internal and external organs that are found in both female and male anatomy with different organs that have their own specific functions. These organs work together to achieve a common goal and purpose which is to procreate. The reproductive system is an important system because without it the existence of the new generation wouldn’t be achieved.

As we all know, the process of the reproduction of new organisms is through sexual intercourse, which means a male and female has to exchange bodily fluids to successfully reproduce an offspring. However, due to this process, it is very easy to obtain diseases that can affect our life whether it is sexually or not. This system is quite sensitive therefore we must take care of it.

In this blog, we will be specifically focus on tackling about Cervical Cancer that occurs only in female reproductive organs so this is relatable to all ladies out there.

CERVICAL CANCER

Cancer is a disease in which cells in the body grow out of control. This is a leading cause of death worldwide among women in both high-income countries (HICs) and middle-income countries (Torre 2017). Cancer is always named after the part of the body where it starts, even if it spreads to other body parts later. When cancer starts in the cervix, it is called cervical cancer.

The cervix is the lowest portion of a woman’s uterus. Cervical cancer occurs due to the abnormal growth of cells that have ability to invade or spread to other parts of the body. When it is invasive, this cancer affects the deeper tissues of the cervix and may have spread to other parts of the body (metastasis), most notably the lungs, liver, bladder, vagina, and rectum.

Most cervical cancer cases are caused by the sexually transmitted human papillomavirus (HPV), this is the same virus that causes genital warts. Although there are more than a hundred types of HPV that have been identified, HPV 16 and 18 are the most common subtypes identified in cervical cancer; together, they are responsible for 70% of cervical cancers worldwide.

Statistics of commonly diagnosed cancers and leading causes of cancer death in the year 2012.  Photo retrieved from aacrjournals.org.

According to Global Cancer in Women: Burden and Trends, cervical cancer is the fourth most frequently diagnosed cancer and the fourth leading cause of cancer-related death, with an estimated 527,600 cases and 265,700 deaths worldwide in 2012. However, in developing countries, it is the second most commonly diagnosed cancer after breast cancer and the third leading cause of cancer-related death after breast and lung cancers (Torre 2017).

Recently, The American Cancer Society estimates that in 2019, approximately 13,170 American women will be diagnosed with cervical cancer and 4,250 will die from the disease. Most cases will be diagnosed in women between the ages of 35 and 44.

The death rate from cervical cancer has dropped over the years. From 2002-2016, the number of deaths was 2.3 per 100,000 women per year. However, even though there has been a decrease of mortality rate due to cervical cancer, we must prevent it from worsening.

SYMPTOMS

The symptoms below will help you identify if you are have attained Cervical Cancer. The symptoms are:

• Abnormal bleeding, such as bleeding between menstrual periods, after sex, after a pelvic exam, or after menopause.

• Discharge that's unusual in amount, color, consistency, or smell.

• Urinating more frequently.

• Pelvic pain.

• Painful urination.

However, if you are not sure the symptoms you are experiencing are of Cervical Cancer since most female reproductive system diseases have common symptoms one can undergo a test.

          Doctors use Pap smear use to diagnose cervical cancer. To perform this test, your doctor collects a sample of cells from the surface of your cervix. These cells are then sent to a lab to be tested for precancerous or cancerous changes. If these changes are found, your doctor may suggest a colposcopy, a procedure for examining your cervix. During this test, your doctor might take a biopsy, which is a sample of cervical cells.

            Therefore the Pap smear test is only preventative, it does not aim to detect cancer but to reveal any cell changes that indicates the possible development of cancer so that a person can take early action to treat it.

            If your doctor has diagnosed you, the doctor will then assign your cancer stage. The stages will help you know how far the cancer cells spread. There are four types of stages for Cervical Cancer:

Stage 1: The cancer is small. It may have spread to the lymph nodes. It hasn’t spread to other parts of your body.

Stage 2: The cancer is larger. It may have spread outside of the uterus and cervix or to the lymph nodes. It still hasn’t reached other parts of your body.

Stage 3: The cancer has spread to the lower part of the vagina or to the pelvis. It may be blocking the uterus, the tubes that carry urine from the kidneys to the bladder. It hasn’t spread to other parts of your body.

Stage 4: The cancer may have spread outside of the pelvis to organs like your lungs, bones, or liver.

            Once we know what kind of situation we are in, we must learn how to control our bad habits and practices that led us to this for the benefit of our body and health. However, the knowledge alone of the obtained disease does not reduce the risk of mortality if we constantly do the things that triggered the cancer or the things that could worsen our situation. Factors that increase cervical cancer risk in women infected with high-risk HPV subtypes are having higher parity, using oral contraceptive, having intercourse with different people, engaging in sex at an early age and smoking.

            But to those who continue to turn a blind eye of the factors mentioned, they have no choice but undergo treatment. Lucky for girls with Cervical Cancer, it can be treated once found early and action has been made immediately. There are five treatments that are used for this cancer but it varies on which stages of cancer at the time of diagnosis.

Surgery

            During surgery, either the cone-shaped section of the cervix (conization) or the entire cervix and uterus (hysterectomy) or the entire uterus and the top of the vagina leaving the uterus for carrying a child (trachelectomy), or the uterus, vagina, bladder, rectum, lymph nodes and part of the colon (pelvic exenteration) will be removed depending on where the cancer cells has spread. But there are surgeries where it will only freeze cancer cells in the cervix (cryosurgery) or burn off the abnormal cells (laser surgery).

Radiation therapy

         Radiation kills cancer cells using high-energy X-ray beams. It can be delivered through a machine outside the body. It can also be delivered from inside the body using a metal tube placed in the uterus or vagina.

Chemotherapy

             Chemotherapy uses drugs to kill cancer cells throughout the body. Doctors give this treatment in cycles. You’ll get chemo for a period of time. You’ll then stop the treatment to give your body time to recover.

Targeted therapy

          Bevacizumab (Avastin) is a newer drug that works in a different way from chemotherapy and radiation. It blocks the growth of new blood vessels that help the cancer grow and survive. This drug is often given together with chemotherapy.

            But there is a better way to lessen the possibility of having Cervical Cancer and that is to avoid the things that cause the cancer in the first place. First and foremost, constantly see a doctor and have check-ups like getting cervical screenings or get an HPV vaccine shot in order to avoid having cancer. When having sex, always use condoms or any barrier birth control method to avoid being transmitted with HPV or STDs at the same time. Aside from that, avoid having different sex partners or better yet never have sex at such an early age. And lastly, quit smoking, not only will it save you from having Cervical Cancer but it will also prevent you from having lung cancer and it will improve your health.

Our reproductive system is very sensitive, most especially to women because compare to male reproductive system, it is much more complicated because women are the carrier of babies. If women would constantly do things that shouldn’t be done (e.g. sexual intercourse) will not only put their health in danger but as well as the possibility of carrying and giving birth to child safely. But if they have survived in giving birth, the child will likely be affected by this because there is a possibility that the child will carry it genetically.

 Doing these prevents you from obtaining cervical cancer or any diseases for that matter. This may be hard for those people who have these negative activities as hobbies but it will save you from using your energy, money and especially it brings you away from death. Keeping our reproductive organs properly cleaned can also help you keep your reproductive system healthy, without any complication.

Reference:

Cervical cancer. (2019, December 18). Retrieved from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cervical_cancer.

Cervical cancer. (2019, July 31). Retrieved from https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/cervical-cancer/symptoms-causes/syc-20352501.

Cervical Cancer Causes, Diagnosis and Symptoms. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.nccc-online.org/hpvcervical-cancer/cervical-cancer-overview/.

Human Reproductive System. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.termpaperwarehouse.com/essay-on/Human-Reproductive-System/86913.

Martin, L. J. (2018, January 14). Cervical Cancer: Causes, Symptoms, Diagnosis, Treatment, & Outlook. Retrieved from https://www.webmd.com/cancer/cervical-cancer/cervical-cancer#1.

Torre, L. A., Islami, F., Siegel, R. L., Ward, E. M., & Jemal, A. (2017, April 1). Global Cancer in Women: Burden and Trends. Retrieved from https://cebp.aacrjournals.org/content/26/4/444.

Watson, S. (2019, September 30). Cervical Cancer: Causes, Symptoms, Prevention, and Treatment. Retrieved from https://www.healthline.com/health/cervical-cancer.

Zimmermann, K. A. (2018, March 22). Reproductive System: Facts, Functions & Diseases. Retrieved from https://www.livescience.com/26741-reproductive-system.html.

Cerv

,mp;kical cancer. (2019, December 18). Retrieved from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cervical_cancer.

Cervical cancer. (2019, July 31). Retrieved from https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/cervical-cancer/symptoms-causes/syc-20352501.

Cervical Cancer Causes, Diagnosis and Symptoms. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.nccc-online.org/hpvcervical-cancer/cervical-cancer-overview/.

Human Reproductive System. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.termpaperwarehouse.com/essay-on/Human-Reproductive-System/86913.

Martin, L. J. (2018, January 14). Cervical Cancer: Causes, Symptoms, Diagnosis, Treatment, & Outlook. Retrieved from https://www.webmd.com/cancer/cervical-cancer/cervical-cancer#1.

Martin, L. J. (2018, January 14). Cervical Cancer: Causes, Symptoms, Diagnosis, Treatment, & Outlook. Retrieved from https://www.webmd.com/cancer/cervical-cancer/cervical-cancer#1.

Torre, L. A., Islami, F., Siegel, R. L., Ward, E. M., & Jemal, A. (2017, April 1). Global Cancer in Women: Burden and Trends. Retrieved from https://cebp.aacrjournals.org/content/26/4/444.

Watson, S. (2019, September 30). Cervical Cancer: Causes, Symptoms, Prevention, and Treatment. Retrieved from https://www.healthline.com/health/cervical-cancer.

zimmermann, K. A. (2018, March 22). Reproductive System: Facts, Functions & Diseases. Retrieved from https://www.livescience.com/26741-reproductive-system.html.

Cervical cancer. (2019, December 18). Retrieved from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cervical_cancer.

Cervical cancer. (2019, July 31). Retrieved from https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/cervical-cancer/symptoms-causes/syc-20352501.

Cervical Cancer Causes, Diagnosis and Symptoms. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.nccc-online.org/hpvcervical-cancer/cervical-cancer-overview/.

Human Reproductive System. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.termpaperwarehouse.com/essay-on/Human-Reproductive-System/86913.

Martin, L. J. (2018, January 14). Cervical Cancer: Causes, Symptoms, Diagnosis, Treatment, & Outlook. Retrieved from https://www.webmd.com/cancer/cervical-cancer/cervical-cancer#1.

Martin, L. J. (2018, January 14). Cervical Cancer: Causes, Symptoms, Diagnosis, Treatment, & Outlook. Retrieved from https://www.webmd.com/cancer/cervical-cancer/cervical-cancer#1.

Torre, L. A., Islami, F., Siegel, R. L., Ward, E. M., & Jemal, A. (2017, April 1). Global Cancer in Women: Burden and Trends. Retrieved from https://cebp.aacrjournals.org/content/26/4/444.

Watson, S. (2019, September 30). Cervical Cancer: Causes, Symptoms, Prevention, and Treatment. Retrieved from https://www.healthline.com/health/cervical-cancer.

zimmermann, K. A. (2018, March 22). Reproductive System: Facts, Functions & Diseases. Retrieved from https://www.livescience.com/26741-reproductive-system.html.