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Cervical Cancer Still
Cutting Many Lives Short
While
deaths from cervical cancer have plunged in wealthy nations over
the past 50 years, the disease remains a top killer of younger
women in many parts of the world, new research shows.
In fact, researchers found, in
Latin American and Caribbean countries, cervical cancer robs young
and middle-aged women of more years of life than any other disease.
The findings underscore the need
for prevention efforts and screening in developing nations, said
study author Dr. Zuo-Feng Zhang of the University of California
Los Angeles.
He and his colleagues report the
findings in the current issue of the International Journal of
Cancer.
Routine Pap testing is credited
for the drop in cervical cancer deaths that has been seen in the
U.S. and other developed nations over the past half century. Pap
tests can reveal early cancer, as well as precancerous changes
in cervical cells; if necessary, this abnormal tissue can be removed
before cancer develops.
A woman can also cut her odds of
developing cervical cancer by avoiding risk factors. In most cases,
the disease is caused by infection with certain strains of the
sexually transmitted human papillomavirus (HPV). Research indicates
that women can lower their risk of both HPV and cervical cancer
by not having sex before age 18 and by limiting their number of
sexual partners.
In countries low on resources,
however, routine Pap tests are not feasible, and education on
cervical cancer risk factors is lacking. As a result, it's estimated
that more than 80 percent of the world's cervical cancer cases
occur in these nations.
In the new study, Zhang and his
colleagues used a measure known as "years of life lost" to look
at the impact of cervical cancer among women ages 25 to 64 in
2000. This measure, unlike a simple death rate, takes into account
a woman's age at death versus her life expectancy.
Globally, the researchers found,
AIDS was responsible for the most years of life lost by far, followed
by complications related to pregnancy and childbirth, and tuberculosis.
However, in Latin America and the
Caribbean, cervical cancer was the most important cause of lost
years. In addition, women in sub-Saharan Africa and south-central
Asia lost more years to cervical cancer than to any other type
of cancer.
In most other world regions, breast
cancer was responsible for the most years of life lost, according
to the report.>
Zhang told Reuters Health that
more international attention needs to paid to the burden of cervical
cancer in developing nations. Resource-poor regions, he said,
need help from wealthier nations and international aid agencies
to educate women on the risk factors for cervical cancer and to
improve screening.
He noted that Pap tests, which
involve sending cervical samples to a medical lab to be examined
under the microscope and interpreted by a pathologist, require
resources that poorer world regions lack.
But there are alternatives, including
simple visual inspections of the cervix, which can spot lesions.
While not as sensitive as the Pap test, Zhang said, "it's better
than no screening at all."
SOURCE: International Journal of
Cancer, April 10, 2004.
Reference
Source 89
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