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The American Cancer Society expected 13,360 women in the United States to be diagnosed with cervical cancer in 2025. While early diagnosis and treatment can preserve fertility after treatment, cervical cancer awareness can help you prevent the disease in the first place.
“Cervical cancer is highly preventable,” says Dr. Eloise Chapman-Davis, associate professor of obstetrics and gynecology and associate fellowship director for the Weill Cornell Medicine/Columbia NYP Gynecologic Oncology Fellowship. “Patients need to know their options and work with us to cut their cervical cancer risk down to size.”
Located at the bottom of the uterus, the cervix links the uterus to the vagina and contains two types of cells. These cell types are:
The place in the cervix where these two cell types meet is the transformation zone. Most cervical cancers start here.
Unlike other cancers, cervical cancer often begins with human papillomavirus (HPV), a sexually transmitted infection (STI).
“HPV is the most common sexually transmitted infection in the United States,” says Dr. Suzanne Pastore, board-certified OBGYN at Weill Cornell Medicine. “Approximately 80 percent of sexually active women will have HPV at some point in life.”
Thankfully, most HPV infections don’t develop into cancer. Your risk for HPV causing cancer increases with the following:
While it’s impossible to always prevent cervical cancer, you can greatly reduce your risk by maintaining and acting on cervical cancer awareness. Along with practicing safe sex and not smoking, talk to your care team about screening and vaccination options.
Two screenings help detect abnormal cells or infection that may lead to cervical cancer. Your provider can then remove precancerous cells before they turn into cancer. Ask your provider which test you should undergo at your annual wellness exam.
Your options are:
The process for both screenings is the same. Your women’s health provider removes a small sample of cells from your cervix during a physical exam. These cells then undergo laboratory examination. If a Pap test has abnormal results, the same cells can be used for HPV testing. Based on these results, additional testing is necessary to confirm the presence of cancer.
Diagnostic tests include:
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, additional testing is unnecessary after age 65 if you’ve never had a cervical precancer, have had your cervix removed or have had at least two normal Pap or HPV tests in the past decade.
Before undergoing your first cervical cancer screening, an HPV vaccine provides protection starting at an early age.
“By preventing infection from occurring in the first place, the vaccine can dramatically reduce the risk of cervical cancer later in life,” says Dr. Evelyn Cantillo, a gynecologic oncologist and assistant professor of obstetrics and gynecology at Weill Cornell Medicine. “In other countries, vaccination is doing just that: creating herd immunity as a key strategy in prevention.”
The HPV vaccine is typically given at ages 11 or 12, although it can be received as early as age 9. For maximum protection, you should receive at least two doses. HPV vaccination should take place at the following times:
If you miss the vaccine as a preteen, you can catch up before age 26. After that age, the vaccine is less helpful as you’ve likely already been exposed to HPV.
You may experience mild side effects from the vaccine, such as soreness at the site of injection, fever or headache. Severe allergic reactions are rare, but possible.
Regardless of when you receive it, the HPV vaccine provides lasting benefits.
“The HPV vaccine remains the most preventive tool of all,” says Dr. Aviram Mizrachi, associate professor of otolaryngology—head and neck surgery at Weill Cornell Medicine. “Studies show no evidence of waning immunity for at least 10 years after vaccination.”
One of the most important cervical cancer awareness facts is that the disease is highly preventable.
Need help managing your good health? Find a doctor at Weill Cornell Medicine today.
