Download What You Can Do to Help Protect Yourself against Cervical Cancer

What You Can Do to Help Protect
Yourself Against Cervical Cancer
Presented by:
The Foundation for Women’s Cancer
© Updated September 2012
About this presentation
This presentation is intended to help women take an active role in
their health care. It does not replace the judgment of a health care
professional in diagnosing and treating disease.
Free image courtesy of FreeDigitalPhotos.net
What is cervical cancer?
Cervical Cancer is a serious, life-threatening disease.
What is cervical cancer?
• Cervical cancer is a serious disease
• Every day in the U.S., about 10 women die from cervical
cancer.
• The good news is that you don’t have to be one of these
women. There are steps you can take to help protect yourself
against getting cervical cancer.
• We are going to take about an hour today to talk about cervical
cancer. I will share some information with you and also leave
lots of time for you to ask questions.
• All of us agree to make this conversation confidential.
What is the cervix?
Image Courtesy of ASHA
What is the cervix?
• The cervix is inside a woman’s body.
• It is between the uterus and the vagina.
• The cervix holds the unborn baby in the uterus until it is ready
to be born.
Cervical cancer is caused by a virus
Cervical cancer is caused by a virus
• Cervical cancer is caused by a virus, called HPV.
• HPV stands for Human Papillomavirus.
• HPV is very common. About eight out of ten women will get HPV
by the time they are 50 years old.
• Most HPV infections clear up on their own. Your body’s immune
system fights off the virus without you ever being aware that you
have the infection.
Do you have any questions?
What is HPV?
Normal cell
Source: iStockphoto
Virus
What is HPV?
• There are more than 100 different kinds of HPV.
• Some types of HPV cause the warts you get
• Some cause genital warts.
• Some invade the cervix.
• The cervical HPV types, called high risk, are the ones that can
cause cervical cancer.
Is HPV the same as HIV?
Is HPV the same as HIV?
• No. HPV is not the same virus as HIV. HIV causes AIDS. HPV
does not.
• HPV is not the same as Herpes. They are different viruses
that cause different diseases.
• HPV is also different from a yeast infection. Having a yeast
infection does not mean that you have HPV.
• The only thing that all these infections have in common is that
they all may involve the genital area.
How do women get HPV?
How do women get HPV?
• The types of HPV that cause cervical cancer are spread
through genital contact.
• Genital contact means touching skin in the genital area, not
only intercourse.
• It is considered a sexually transmitted infection (STI).
• HPV is not spread by toilet seats or mouth to mouth kissing or
holding hands.
What happens if HPV stays in your
body?
Cervix with low-grade HPV infection
Cervix with cervical cancer
©The GlaxoSmithKline Group of companies, All Rights Reserved. CVX393. February 2010.
What happens if HPV stays in your
body?
• Sometimes the HPV stays in your body over a longer period
of time and starts to cause changes in your cervix.
• These cervix changes can take a long time, usually more than
one year to up to ten years.
• When these changes are small, they can be removed before
any serious problems start.
• A Pap test shows these changes.
• If the changes are not treated, they can grow and can become
cancer. That is why it is so important to get regular Pap tests.
What are the symptoms of HPV?
What are the symptoms of HPV?
• In the early stages of infection, HPV usually does not have
any signs or symptoms.
• When symptoms do show up, it has most likely already grown
into invasive cancer.
• The only way to tell if you have the early stages of HPV
infection is to see your healthcare provider to have regular
Pap tests.
• These early changes can be treated before they turn into
cancer.
What should you do if you have these
symptoms?
What should you do if you have these
symptoms?
• The symptoms of cervical cancer are:
o Unusual discharge from the vagina
o Blood spots or light bleeding when you’re not having your
period
o Bleeding after menopause
o Bleeding or pain during sex
• If you have any of these symptoms or any other problems,
see your healthcare provider right away.
• You can have these symptoms for other reasons than cervical
cancer, but you should always check out these symptoms with
your healthcare provider.
How can I help protect myself against
cervical cancer?
How can I help protect myself against
cervical cancer?
• Talk to your healthcare provider about the right steps to you to take
to help protect yourself against cervical cancer.
• Get vaccinated early. Vaccines that prevent seven out of ten HPV
infections that cause cervical cancer are available for girls and
women ages 9 -26.
• Get regular Pap tests as recommended by your healthcare
provider. Testing can catch early cell changes before they become
cancer, when they are easier to treat.
• An HPV test is also available and can help your healthcare provider
decide the right treatment if you have a long-lasting infection.
• Use condoms.
What can you tell me about
vaccination against cervical cancer?
What can you tell me about
vaccination against cervical cancer?
• The Federal Food and Drug Administration (FDA), the Centers for
Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and many other healthcare
groups recommend that girls and women ages 9-26 get vaccinated.
• The cervical cancer vaccines are given as a 3-shot series that takes
about 6 months to complete.
• The side effects may include soreness in the arm at the injection
site, headache, and/or dizziness. Talk to your healthcare provider
about any side effects.
Why is vaccination against cervical cancer
recommended for girls so young?
Why is vaccination against cervical cancer
recommended for girls so young?
• Vaccination against cervical cancer is recommended by the CDC
for girls 11and 12, at the time of the 5th – 6th grade back-to-school
physical.
• Vaccination against cervical cancer works best when given before a
girl has started having any sexual activity.
Do you have any questions?
Can you tell me more about the Pap
test?
Can you tell me more about the Pap
test?
• The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG)
recently changed its guidelines about how often to get Pap tests. The
Pap test is designed to find early changes on the cervix that can go
on to cause cervical cancer. Talk to your healthcare provider about
the right Pap test schedule for you.
• You should still see your healthcare provider for a check-up every
year.
• The Pap test has been used for over 50 years in the U.S. and has
dramatically reduced cervical cancer.
• Most women who get cervical cancer haven’t had a Pap test in the
last 5 years.
What questions might my healthcare
provider ask?
What questions might my healthcare
provider ask?
• Your healthcare provider may ask questions about your health, your
periods, your sexual partners. Answer his or her questions honestly.
It is important to answer questions as completely as possible. Your
provider will keep your information private. She needs this information
to help you decide the care that is best for you.
• You can also ask your healthcare provider questions. Find out how
you will be told the results of your Pap test. Ask questions about what
the results mean. Make sure you get answers to your questions.
How often should I get a Pap test?
How often should I get a Pap test?
Current cervical cancer screening guidelines recommend:
• Women should not be screened before age 21
• Women 21-29 should be screened with the Pap test alone every 3 years.
HPV testing should not be used for screening in this age group
• For women 30 and over, the preferred approach is the Pap test plus HPV
testing every 5 years
• Screening is not recommended for women over age 65 who have had at
least 3 consecutive Pap tests or at least 2 negative HPV test the last 10
years, with the most recent test in the last 5 years
Note: These guidelines are not intended for women with a history of cervical cancer,
exposure to DES in utero, or women who are immunosuppressed (e.g. HIV positive).
Abnormal pap test
How common is it?
Every year in the US...
11,000 cancers
300,000 high-risk precancers
1.25 million low-risk dysplasia,
low-risk cervical changes
2-3 million abnormal pap tests,
reasons unknown
50-60 million women screened
Abnormal pap test
How common is it?
• Every year 50-60 million women in the U.S. will have a Pap test.
• More than 2 million of them will have a low-risk, abnormal result
from an unknown cause.
• 1.25 million of them will have low-grade cervical changes that most
likely will clear up on their own.
• 300,000 will have a high-grade, more advanced pre-cancerous
condition.
• 11,000 will have cervical cancer.
• 3,800 will die from cervical cancer.
Can you tell me more about the HPV
test?
Can you tell me more about the HPV
test?
• There is a test for HPV.
• Current screening guidelines recommend that for women 30 and
over, the preferred approach is the Pap test plus HPV testing
every 5 years for women over 30.
• It can be given at the same time as the Pap test using the same
or another swab.
• This test can provide additional information to help your
healthcare provider decide if you have a high risk HPV and, if so,
what kind of treatment, if any, you should have.
How can I help lower my risk of
getting cervical cancer?
How can I help lower my risk of
getting cervical cancer?
• There are several steps you can take that may help lower
your chances of getting HPV and Cervical Cancer
o Get vaccinated
o Get regular Pap and HPV tests
o If you are not a smoker, don’t start.
o If you are a smoker, quit.
o Eat nutritious foods
o Limit your sexual activity to one partner who has sex
only with you
o Use a condom every time
How can HPV affect pregnancy?
How can HPV affect pregnancy?
• The types of HPV that can cause cervical cancer have not been
found to cause problems for babies.
• You can get pregnant if you have an HPV infection.
• If your Pap test is abnormal during pregnancy, your healthcare
provider may want you to have more tests. An abnormal Pap
result during pregnancy is usually handled in a more “hands off”
way than an abnormal Pap result when not pregnant. Necessary
treatment may be deferred until you are no longer pregnant.
• Vaccination against cervical cancer is not recommended if you
are pregnant, thinking about becoming pregnant soon or are
nursing.
Do you have any questions?
Talk to your healthcare provider about the 3 steps
you can take to help prevent cervical cancer:
1. Vaccinate early
2. Get routine Pap tests & HPV testing
3. Use condoms to help prevent HPV
For more information
Foundation for Women’s Cancer
230 W. Monroe
Suite 2528
Chicago, IL 60606
800-444-4441
www.foundationforwomenscancer.org
[email protected]