Cervical Cancer

9 Pages 2350 Words

Outline

1. Introduction
What is cancer of the cervix?
Statistical evidence about cancer of the cervix?
2. Risk factors and preventions
3. Detection and Symptoms
4. Types of treatment












What Is Cervical Cancer
The cervix is the lower part of the uterus (womb). The uterus is divided into two parts. The upper part or body of the uterus is where a fetus grows. The cervix connects the body of the uterus to the vagina (birth canal). The part of the cervix closest to the body of the uterus is called the endo-cervix. The part next to the vagina is the ecto-cervix.
Cervical cancer is a type of cancer that begins in the lining of the cervix. Cervical cancers do not form suddenly; there is a gradual change of normal cells within the cervix. Some women with pre-cancerous changes of the cervix will develop cancer. This usually takes several years but sometimes can happen in less than a year. For some women, pre-cancerous changes may go away without any treatment. More often, if these pre-cancers are treated, true cancers can be prevented.
Precancerous changes can be separated into several categories based on how the cells of the cervix look under a microscope. There are several systems for naming and describing these categories of potentially cancerous or pre-cancerous changes. There are two main types of cervical cancers: “squamous cell carcinoma and adenocarcinoma. About 85%-90% of cervical cancers are squamous cells carcinomas. They begin in the ectocervix, most often at its border with the endocervix. The remaining 10%-15% of cervical cancers are adenocarcinomas. Cervical adenocarcinoma develops from the mucus-producing gland cells of the endocervix. Less commonly, cervical cancers have features of both squamous cell carcinomas and adenocarcinomas. These are called adenosquamous carcinomas or mixed carcinomas.
“The American Cancer Society estimates that during 2000, about 12,800 cases of invasive c...