January – Cervical Health Awareness

The United States Congress has designated January as Cervical Health Awareness month. Each year almost 12,000 women are diagnosed with cervical cancer in the US alone, despite the fact that some forms of the condition can be prevented through regular screening.

That astonishing figure doesn’t take into consideration the number of reported sexually transmitted diseases in the US. At least half of all sexually active men and women acquire genital HPV at some time during their lives. High-risk forms of HPV can cause growths on tissues of a woman’s cervix that, over time, can lead to cervical cancer.

The most common test for detection of cervical abnormalities is the Pap Test. The Pap is generally performed by a physician at least once in every three-year period for females under the age of 21 who have been sexually active for three years and for all women over the age of 21. [Read more...]