What
image
  • Antique Stores
  • Apartments
  • imageArts & Entertainment
  • Attorneys
  • Automotive
  • Aviation
  • Bakery
  • Banks
  • Barbecue
  • Barber Shop
  • Beauty & Spa
  • Beauty Salons
  • Bicycles
  • Birds
  • Boating
  • Boutique
  • Bowling
  • Breweries - Wineries
  • Bridal
  • Brunch
  • Business
  • Cabinetry
  • Cafe
  • Camp
  • Candy
  • Carpet Cleaning
  • Caterers
  • CBD
  • Childcare
  • Chiropractors
  • Churches
  • Cleaning Services
  • Co-Working Spaces
  • Coffee
  • Construction
  • Cookies
  • Cultural
  • Dealership
  • Decor
  • Dentists
  • Design Firm
  • Distributor
  • DIY Studios
  • Doggie Daycare
  • Drink
  • Dry Cleaning
  • Duct Cleaning
  • Education
  • Electrical
  • Entertainment
  • Event Venues
  • Family Practice
  • Farm
  • Finances
  • Fitness
  • Flooring
  • Flooring
  • Florist
  • Food
  • Fragrance
  • Funeral Homes
  • Gallery
  • Games
  • Garage Doors
  • Golf
  • Greenhouses
  • Grocery
  • Grocery Stores
  • Guitar Shops
  • Gymnastics
  • Hardware Stores
  • imageHealth & Medical
  • Hearing
  • Hobby Shop
  • Holistic
  • Home & Garden
  • Home Builders
  • Home Construction
  • Home Decor
  • Home Furnishings
  • Home Services
  • Homeless Shelter
  • Horseshoeing
  • Hotel - Bed + Breakfasts
  • Housekeeping
  • Hunting & Outdoors
  • HVAC
  • Ice Cream
  • Insulation
  • Insurance
  • Interior Design
  • Investment Properties
  • IT Services
  • Jewelry
  • Laser Therapy
  • Lashes
  • Library
  • Lounge
  • Lumber
  • Machine Shop
  • Manufacturer
  • Marketing Services
  • Meats
  • Mortgage Lender
  • Mosques
  • Movie Theaters
  • Museums
  • Music
  • Nail Salons
  • Nonprofit
  • OB/GYN
  • Optometry
  • Orthodontists
  • Outdoor Equipment
  • Outdoor Services
  • Outreach Program
  • Painters
  • Parks
  • Pest Control
  • Pet Grooming
  • Pet Waste Removal
  • Pets
  • Pharmacy
  • Photography
  • Pizza
  • Plumber
  • Podiatry
  • Polo Club
  • Pools
  • Private Aviation
  • Private Schools
  • Public Pools
  • Real Estate
  • Recruitment Firm
  • Renovation
  • Restaurant
  • Restoration
  • Retail
  • Roofing
  • Security
  • Senior Living
  • Shopping
  • Skin Care
  • Smoothie and Juice Bar
  • Sound
  • Spa
  • Sports
  • Sports Equipment
  • Stone Imports
  • Storage
  • Tattoo Shops
  • Taxidermy
  • Tea
  • Therapy
  • Title Corporations
  • Toy Stores
  • Transportation
  • Travel
  • Travel Agency
  • Upholstery
  • Veterinarians
  • Wedding Planner
  • Wedding Venue
  • Weight Loss
  • Welding
  • Window Cleaning
  • Wireless
  • Yoga
Where
image
image
OB/GYN

Cervical Health Awareness Month

Cervical Health Awareness Month

Author: Jayde Wall, gynecologic oncology nurse practitioner at the IU Health Joe & Shelly Schwarz Cancer Center in Carmel
cervical cancer

OB/GYN

Did you know that over 14,000 women are diagnosed with invasive cervical cancer each year? Cervical cancer is a gynecologic cancer of the female reproductive tract, specifically the cervix. Here are some tips on how to prevent it and information on screenings.

 What is cervical cancer?

Cervical cancer is a type of cancer that occurs in the cells of the cervix, the lower part of the uterus that connects to the vagina. Typically, cervical cancer occurs most often in women over age 30. Long lasting infections of human papillomavirus (HPV) will cause cervical cancer. At least half of sexually active people will have HPV at some point in their lives, but few of them will get cervical cancer.

How can you prevent cervical cancer?

The first thing you can do to protect yourself from cervical cancer is to get the HPV vaccine. You can get the vaccine starting as early as age nine, but it is recommended for preteens ages 11 and 12. The HPV vaccine is also recommended for adults through age 26 if they are not vaccinated. It is also not recommended for everyone older than 26. Some other tips to prevent getting cervical cancer is to use a condom during sex so you do not contract HPV and limit your number of sexual partners.

Who should be screened for cervical cancer?

There are two different types of screening for cervical cancer. The Pap test (or Pap smear) looks for precancers, cell changes on the cervix that might become cervical cancer if they are not treated appropriately. The HPV test looks for the virus (human papillomavirus) that can cause these cell changes. Both of these tests can be done in a doctor’s office or a clinic. You should begin getting tested for cervical cancer at age 21. If your pap test is normal your doctor will tell you to come back in three years. You can continue testing that often until you are 29, but from ages 30 to 65, you can do a Pap test only, an HPV test only, or you can do both Pap and HPV tests. If you do only a Pap test, you can wait another three years until your next screening. If you do an HPV test, you can wait another five years until your next screening. If you do both Pap and HPV, you can wait another 5 years until your next screening. Getting test results can take as long as three weeks.

If you have any questions or if you or a loved one might have cervical cancer, please talk to a doctor immediately. Learn more at iuhealth.org/cancer.

Leave a Comment

Send me your media kit!

hbspt.forms.create({ portalId: "6486003", formId: "5ee2abaf-81d9-48a9-a10d-de06becaa6db" });