CERVICAL HEALTH FACTORS FOR WOMEN
IN RECOGNITION OF JANUARY BEING CERVICAL HEALTH AWARENESS MONTH, WE SHALL SHARE SOME BASIC INFORMATION ABOUT CERVICAL CANCER RISK FACTORS, PREVENTION, AND THE MOST ADVANCED SCREENING AND DIAGNOSTIC TOOLS.
The risk factors of cervical cancer include having multiple sexual partners, starting sexual activity at a young age, weak immune systems, and smoking. In recent years, HPV vaccines became available to young females and males before they start sexual activity. Practicing safe sex and undergoing regular screening can help reduce the risk of cervical cancer.
During regular Pap smear screening, HPV tests are performed and correlated with the pap smear results. If an abnormality is found, the physician performs a colposcopy procedure, which is a visual examination of the cervix with biopsies of the lesions identified. The biopsies are sent to the lab to be examined by a pathologist.
Pap smears have a sensitivity that ranges from 59-70%. In recent years, to improve the sensitivity, more advanced testing using biomarkers and cytogenetic tools have been available to supplement the morphologic assessment of pap smears and biopsies and the results of HPV testing. The use of p16 and Ki67 stains plays an effective role in confirming high grade dysplasia in equivocal cases. Since many low-grade cervical lesions tend to regress, cytogenetic evaluation for TERC gene amplification and c-MYC help identify low-grade lesions with high risk to progress to cancer. This comprehensive assessment can maximize the diagnostic potential of the samples and increase the chances of early cancer detection.
REFERENCES:
https://www.omnipathology.com/omniprism
Shiraz, A, Crawford, R, Egawa, N, Griffin, H, Doorbar, J. The early detection of cervical cancer. The current and changing landscape of cervical disease detection. Cytopathology. 2020; 31: 258– 270. https://doi.org/10.1111/cyt.12835
Heselmeyer-Haddad K, Sommerfeld K, White NM, Chaudhri N, Morrison LE, Palanisamy N, Wang ZY, Auer G, Steinberg W, Ried T. Genomic amplification of the human telomerase gene (TERC) in pap smears predicts the development of cervical cancer. Am J Pathol. 2005 Apr;166(4):1229-38. doi: 10.1016/S0002-9440(10)62341-3. PMID: 15793301; PMCID: PMC1602397.
