Jade Goody, the reality-TV star, and a young mother with two small boys, died early Sunday morning of cervical cancer. The 27-year-old chronicled her battle with cancer and her death much as she had a good portion of her adult life, under the lights and harsh glare of the television camera. While her life and the way she chose to live it is controversial for some, her public fight and the tragedy of what quickly became her fate has dramatically increased cervical cancer screening in Britain.
Cervical cancer involves the cells of the cervix, the tissue connecting the uterus to the vagina. More than 90% of these cancers are due to the human papilloma virus (HPV), so in most cases cervical cancer is actually a sexually transmitted disease.
Thanks to Dr. Papanicolaou women can be screened for cervical cancer – the simple Pap test. This procedure scrapes cells from the cervix, which are evaluated in the lab for any pre-cancer or cancerous changes. Women are also tested for the actual HPV virus. Having the virus does not mean a woman has cancer or even that she will get it, because most women can fight off the virus. However, for some women it will be the impetus for a cancer so those who test positive will be followed more closely.
There are more than 11,000 new cases of cervical cancer every year in the U.S. and close to 4,000 deaths. When caught early cervical cancer is almost always treatable. And if women are tested regularly it will be caught early, because it is generally a very slow growing cancer. A small percentage of cervical cancers are very aggressive and unfortunately a Pap smear rarely detects these.
Could Jade have been saved? Without her Pap smear history or knowing the type of cancer it is hard to say for sure. However, if she had a typical HPV positive cancer and was diagnosed early in the pre-cancer phase (also called dysplasia) the answer is almost certainly a very sad yes.
Some disagree with her in-your-face approach to her cancer, but I don't. By chronicling her cancer, from the heartbreak of diagnosis, through the devastation of chemotherapy, to the inevitable conclusion she has turned the public eye to cervical cancer forcing women everywhere to come face to face with the reality of this disease.
For more info: www.cancer.gov/cancertopics/types/cervical
Remember, this column does not constitute individual medical advice
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