Cervical Cancer Screening Awareness Week
June 12th is the start of the awareness week for cervical screening in the UK.
Cancer screening is the first stage in testing apparently healthy people to show any signs of the early development of a cancer.
Cervical screening in particular is an early stage of locating any changes in the head of the womb or cervix. If left untreated these changes could easily form into a cancer.
The screening is commonly known as a smear test and involves the taking of a small amount of cells from the cervix to send as samples to a laboratory to be checked for abnormalities. In some of these cases samples are also tested for a virus called HPV that increases the risk of cancer.
The screening programme is available on the NHS for woman aged between 25 and 64 with women between 25 and 49 being invited in every three years.
It is somewhat surprising that an extremely high percentage of women in these age brackets do not take advantage of the free screening on offer, it is vital that any opportunity is taken to check and in the worst case discuss what options are available moving forward.
Consultant Dermatologist Andrew Drakeley from The Sefton Suite explains,
“The early detection of any form of cancer is vital to being able to manage and treat the condition.
When tests are available such as the smear test in women they must be utilised. Cervical cancer is common in the UK with over 50% of cases coming in females under the age of 45.”
If you would like to arrange a consultation with one of our dermatology specialists please all on 0151 330 6551.