Human papilloma virus infection

Human papilloma virus infection

The most important risk factor for cervical cancer is infection by the human papilloma virus (HPV). HPV is a group of more than 100 related viruses that can infect cells on the surface of the skin, genitals, anus, mouth and throat. These viruses are called papilloma viruses because some of them cause a type of growth called a papilloma, which are more
commonly known as warts. Doctors believe that women must have been infected by HPV before they will develop cervical cancer. Different types of HPV cause warts on different parts of the body. Some types cause common warts on the hands and feet. Other types tend to cause warts on the lips or tongue. Still other types of HPV may cause warts to appear on or around the genital organs and in the anal area. These warts may barely be visible or they may be several inches across. These are known as genital warts or condyloma acuminatum. HPV 6 and HPV 11 are the 2 types of HPV that cause most cases of genital warts. They are called low-risk types of HPV because they are seldom linked to cervical cancer.
Certain types of HPV are called high-risk types because they are strongly linked to cancers, including cancers of the cervix, vulva, and vagina in women, penile cancer in men, and anal and oral cancer in men and women. In fact, doctors believe that a woman
must be infected by HPV before she develops cervical cancer. The high-risk types include HPV 16, HPV 18, HPV 31, HPV 33, and HPV 45, as well as some others. About two-thirds of all cervical cancers are caused by HPV 16 and 18. Infection with HPV is common, and in most people the body is able to clear the infection
on its own. Sometimes, however, the infection does not go away and becomes chronic. Chronic infection, especially when it is with high-risk HPV types, can eventually cause certain cancers, such as cervical cancer.
Although HPV can be spread during sex -- including vaginal intercourse, anal intercourse, and oral sex - sex doesn't have to occur for the infection to spread. All that is needed to pass HPV from one person to another is skin-to-skin contact with an area of the
body infected with HPV. Infection with HPV seems to be able to be spread from one part
of the body to another -- for example, infection may start in the cervix and then spread to
the vagina. The only sure way to completely prevent anal and genital HPV infection is to
never allow another person to have contact with those areas of the body.

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Human papilloma virus infection

Human papilloma virus infection
The most important risk factor for cervical cancer is infection by the human papilloma
virus (HPV). HPV is a group of more than 100 related viruses that can infect cells on the
surface of the skin, genitals, anus, mouth and throat. These viruses are called papilloma
viruses because some of them cause a type of growth called a papilloma, which are more
commonly known as warts. Doctors believe that women must have been infected by HPV
before they will develop cervical cancer.
Different types of HPV cause warts on different parts of the body. Some types cause
common warts on the hands and feet. Other types tend to cause warts on the lips or
tongue. Still other types of HPV may cause warts to appear on or around the genital
organs and in the anal area. These warts may barely be visible or they may be several
inches across. These are known as genital warts or condyloma acuminatum. HPV 6 and
HPV 11 are the 2 types of HPV that cause most cases of genital warts. They are called
low-risk types of HPV because they are seldom linked to cervical cancer.
Certain types of HPV are called high-risk types because they are strongly linked to
cancers, including cancers of the cervix, vulva, and vagina in women, penile cancer in
men, and anal and oral cancer in men and women. In fact, doctors believe that a woman
must be infected by HPV before she develops cervical cancer. The high-risk types
include HPV 16, HPV 18, HPV 31, HPV 33, and HPV 45, as well as some others. About
two-thirds of all cervical cancers are caused by HPV 16 and 18.

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What are the risk factors for cervical cancer?

What are the risk factors for cervical cancer?A risk factor is anything that changes your chance of getting a disease such as cancer.
Different cancers have different risk factors. For example, exposing skin to strong
sunlight is a risk factor for skin cancer. Smoking is a risk factor for many cancers. But
having a risk factor, or even several, does not mean that you will get the disease.
Seeral risk factors increase your chance of getting cervical cancer. Women without any of
these risk factors rarely develop cervical cancer. Although these factors increase the odds
of getting cervical cancer, many women with these risk factors do not develop this
disease. When a woman develops cervical cancer or pre-cancerous changes of the cervix,
it is not possible to say with certainty that a particular risk factor was the cause.
In thinking about the following risk factors, it helps to focus on those that you can change
or avoid (like smoking or human papilloma virus infection), rather than those that you
cannot (such as your age and family history). It is still important, though, to know about
risk factors that cannot be changed, because it's even more important for women who
have these factors to get regular Pap tests to detect cervical cancer early. Cervical cancer
risk factors include:

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Importance of cervical cancer screening

Importance of cervical cancer screening
The goal of screening for cervical cancer is to find cervix cell changes and early cervical
cancers before they cause symptoms. Screening refers to the use of tests and exams to
find a disease, such as cancer, in people who do not have any symptoms. Early detection
means applying a strategy that results in an earlier diagnosis of cervical cancer than
otherwise might have occurred. Screening tests offer the best chance to detect cervical
cancer at an early stage when successful treatment is likely. Screening can also actually
prevent most cervical cancers by finding abnormal cervix cell changes (pre-cancers) so
that they can be treated before they have a chance to turn into a cervical cancer.
Cancer of the cervix may be prevented or detected early by regular Pap tests. If it is
detected early, cervical cancer is one of the most successfully treatable cancers. In the
United States, the cervical cancer death rate declined by almost 70% between 1955 and
1992, in large part due to the effectiveness of Pap smear screening. The death rate
continues to decline each year.
Despite the recognized benefits of Pap test screening, not all American women take
advantage of it. As of the year 2000, slightly over 80% of women had had a Pap test in
the previous 3 years. Asian-American women, recent immigrants, women without health
insurance, and women with fewer years of education were less likely to have had regular
Pap tests.
Between 60% and 80% of American women with newly diagnosed invasive cervical
cancer have not had a Pap smear in the past 5 years. Many of these women have never
had a Pap test.
Cervical cancer deaths are higher in populations around the world where women do not
have routine Pap tests. In fact, cervical cancer is the major cause of cancer deaths in
women in many developing countries. These women are usually diagnosed with an
invasive late stage, rather than as pre-cancers or early cancers.

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What is cervical cancer?

What is cervical cancer?
The cervix is the lower part of the uterus (womb). It is sometimes called the uterine cervix. The body of the uterus (the upper part) is where a fetus grows. The cervix connects the body of the uterus to the vagina (birth canal). The part of the cervix closest to the body of the uterus is called the endocervix. The part next to the vagina is the exocervix (or ectocervix). The 2 main types of cells covering the cervix are squamous
cells (on the exocervix) and glandular cells (on the endocervix). The place where these 2 cell types meet is called the transformation zone. Most cervical cancers start in the transformation zone. Most cervical cancers begin in the cells lining the cervix. These cells do not suddenly change into cancer. Instead, the normal cells of the cervix gradually develop precancerous
changes that turn into cancer. Doctors use several terms to describe these precancerous changes, including cervical intraepithelial neoplasia (CIN), squamous intraepithelial lesion (SIL), and dysplasia. These changes can be detected by the Pap test and treated to prevent cancer from developing (see the section, "Can cervical cancer be prevented?").Cervical cancers and cervical pre-cancers are classified by how they look under a
microscope. There are 2 main types of cervical cancer: squamous cell carcinoma and
adenocarcinoma. About 80% to 90% of cervical cancers are squamous cell carcinomas.
These cancers start in the squamous cells that cover the surface of the exocervix. Under
the microscope, this type of cancer is made up of cells that are like squamous cells.
Most of the remaining cervical cancers are adenocarcinomas. Cervical adenocarcinomas
seem to have become more common in the last 20 to 30 years. Cervical adenocarcinoma
develops from the mucus-producing gland cells of the endocervix. Less commonly,
cervical cancers have features of both squamous cell carcinomas and adenocarcinomas.
These are called adenosquamous carcinomas or mixed carcinomas.
Although cervical cancers start from cells with pre-cancerous changes (pre-cancers), only
some women with pre-cancers of the cervix will develop cancer. The change from precancer
to cancer usually takes several years -- but it can happen in less than a year. For
most women, pre-cancerous cells will remain unchanged and go away without any
treatment. Still, in some women pre-cancers turn into true (invasive) cancers. Treating all
pre-cancers can prevent almost all true cancers. Pre-cancerous changes and specific types
of treatment for pre-cancers are discussed in the section, "Can cervical cancer be
prevented?"

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What is cervical cancer?

What is cervical cancer?
The cervix is the lower part of the uterus (womb). It is sometimes called the uterine
cervix. The body of the uterus (the upper part) is where a fetus grows. The cervix
connects the body of the uterus to the vagina (birth canal). The part of the cervix closest
to the body of the uterus is called the endocervix. The part next to the vagina is the
exocervix (or ectocervix). The 2 main types of cells covering the cervix are squamous
cells (on the exocervix) and glandular cells (on the endocervix). The place where these 2
cell types meet is called the transformation zone. Most cervical cancers start in the
transformation zone.

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