Experts have urged women to watch out for three subtle red-flag signs of one of the deadliest cancers — as spotting the disease early dramatically improves changes of survival.
Roughly two women in Britain every day die from cervical cancer, which famously killed TV personality Jade Goody at the age of just 27.
The disease is often called a ‘silent killer’ because its symptoms can be easily mistaken for less serious problems, like heavy periods and exhaustion.
But if the signs are recognised early, the chance of surviving for at least five years is roughly 95 per cent.
This drops to 15 per cent if the cancer is detected at later stages, when it’s spread to other areas of the body.
Angela Sarmiento Bentancourt, medical specialist at healthcare technology company myTomorrows, which helps patients access clinical trial, had flagged the three signs to watch out for.
Heavier periods, bleeding after sex, between periods, or after menopause, and pain during sex, or in general, particularly in your lower back, pelvis, or lower abdomen are all symptoms of the cancer.
Often, the heavier and more frequent bleeding can leave women feeling more exhausted than usual, she warns.
Cervical cancer is often called a ‘silent killer’ because it can develop without symptoms for years and go unnoticed
Cervical cancer symptoms to look out for include unusual vaginal bleeding, pain during sex and lower back or pelvic pain.
Lower back pain and pain between your hip bones (pelvis) are commonly experienced during menstruation. But they could also be a sign of cervical cancer.
The pain is often caused by a tumour pressing on bone, nerves, or organs.
Abnormal bleeding can occur because cancerous tissue and its blood vessels are fragile and bleed easily. As the disease spreads, healthy tissue can also become damaged and bleed, experts say.
Meanwhile, if your cervix is inflamed, which can result from a tumour, the pressure of sex may be painful.
It’s for this reason that Ms Sarmiento Bentancour advises seeking medical help for the above problems, so doctors can perform tests to rule out cancer.
It is much more likely that bleeding will be due to a range of less serious causes, like hormone imbalance such as polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS), polyps or fibroids, sexually transmitted diseases, or the common reproductive illness, endometriosis.
Similarly, pain during sex could be due to an infection, the menopause, genital irritation or allergy from soaps or condoms.
All women and people with a cervix in the UK aged between 25 and 64 are also invited for regular cervical screenings, which serve as the primary way of diagnosing
Cervical cancer is the 14th most common cancer in females in the UK, affecting around 3,300 people per year.
Fortunately, in the UK, women have access to comprehensive cervical cancer screenings, but globally, cervical cancer is the fourth most common cancer in women, and low- and middle-income countries have the highest rates of cervical cancer incidence and mortality.
In about 99 per cent of cases, cervical cancer is caused by an infection of a high-risk type of human papillomavirus (HPV).
There are more than 100 types of HPV, and only around 30 can affect the genital area.
Many people never show symptoms, as they can arise years after infection, and the majority of cases go away without treatment.
However, in some cases, it can cause the genital tissues to grow abnormally, resulting over many years in cervical cancer.
Ms Bentancourt explains that condoms can help lower the chance of contracting HPV.
However, because they do not cover all the skin around the genitals, they don’t provide complete protection.
There is a vaccine for HPV.
It is more than 80 percent effective and available in much of the developed world.
It is a two-dose vaccine now available for children between ages 11 and 12. The shots come 12 months apart.
For people who missed that window, a three-dose shot is available to people 15 to 26.
The vaccine has been offered to girls in England and Wales since September 2008 before being widened to include boys in 2019.
All women in the UK aged between 25 and 64 are also invited for regular cervical screenings, which serve as the primary way of diagnosing.
