CANCERS DEVELOP FROM ABNORMAL CELLS

The body's organs and tissues are made up of basic units called cells. These cells age and, in most cases, they are replaced by younger cells that divide to produce new cells. This orderly process keeps our body healthy by replenishing or repairing aged, worn and damaged tissues.

Rarely, an error in cell division may occur creating an abnormal cell that may continue to divide and perpetuate itself. If these cells continue dividing when new cells are not needed, a mass of tissue forms and this is referred to as a tumor. Tumors may be either benign (non-cancerous) or malignant (cancerous). This process occurs in all living tissues, and when an error in cell division occurs, our immune system is sensitive to this, identifies the error and destroys the cell. When a cancer develops to the point it is detected, it is because these abnormal cells were not detected by the surveillance of the immune system.

Each year about 15,000 women in the United States learn they have cancer of the cervix. The cervix is part of the female reproductive system.

It is the lower narrow part of the uterus (womb) in the lower abdomen between the bladder and the rectum, and it forms a canal that opens from the uterus into the vagina, leading to the outside of the body.

This cancer usually affects women between age 40 and 55.

Pap tests help detection

Pre-cancerous lesions of the cervix can be detected by the Pap test, and the great majority of women with these types of lesions can be cured without the need for hysterectomy. This test has dramatically helped lower the incidence of cervical cancer in developed countries where it is used as a screening tool. This test also detects invasive cancers, and when detected early, these cancers can often be cured with surgery or radiation treatment. Cervical cancer may develop in women who have been infected with the Human Papillomavirus (HPV), a sexually transmitted virus.

There is perhaps no other single word that strikes as much terror as being told that you have "cancer." Often, patients initially feel that they are alone in carrying this diagnosis; however, in fact, there are 16,000 cases of invasive cervical cancer a year in the United States and more than 50,000 cases of pre-invasive cancer. There are more than 400,000 cases of cervical cancer worldwide. These numbers would drop dramatically if every woman would get an annual Pap smear.

A Pap test, or "smear," can be done in a doctor's office or a health clinic using a small wooden scraper or a small brush to collect some of the surface lining cells of the cervix and upper vagina. These are applied, or smeared, to a glass slide so they may be examined by experts screening for pre-cancerous or cancerous cells. This is a relatively simple, painless test that can be performed at the time of an annual pelvic examination.

Symptoms of cervical cancer include redness, inflammation or sores in the cervix that are visible during a pelvic examination, abnormal bleeding, heavy and particularly lengthy menstrual periods, bleeding after menopause and sometimes increased vaginal discharge.

By limiting your number of sexual partners, using condoms or avoiding sex with people who have had many other sexual partners, you decrease your risk of exposure to HPV and may decrease your risk for cervical cancer. See your physician or nurse practitioner for an annual Pap smear to detect pre-cancerous or cancerous lesions at an early curable stage.

World Wide Web Resources

www.concernet.nci.nih.cov/wyntk_pubs/cervix.htm

This Web site provided by the National Institutes of Health gives information about what cervical cancer is , symptoms of this condition and treatments.

www.wcn.org/cancer_info/cerv1.htm

This Web site provided by the Women's Cancer Network gives facts about cervical cancer as well as specialists and support groups in your area.