Cervical Cancer Month

Dear Editor,

January is cervical cancer awareness month, 11 percent of United States women report that they do not have their pop test screenings.

In the United States, about 10,000 women are diagnosed with cervical cancer each year and about 3,700 women die in the U.S. each year from this disease.

High-Risk HPV (human papillomovirus) Types are directly related to cervical cancer, yet many women are unaware of what HPV is or the relationship it has to cervical cancer.

HPV is the most common sexually transmitted virus in the U.S. There are many types of HPV, About 20 million people in the U.S. are infected and about 6.2 million more get infected each year.

Even if a woman has had the HPV/cervical cancer vaccine, she will continue to require her regular cervical cancer screen by the Pap test and HPV test when recommended.

Although cervical cancer incidence and mortality rates have declined approximately 50 percent in the United States over the past three decades, the disease remains a serious health threat.

Cervical cancer is preventable and curable if caught in time. Important strategies to reduce your risk are by getting annual pap smears as well as prevention of HPV with the HPV vaccine.

Becky Brooks

Clinic nurse

People's Family Health Services

McCook