Say no to "cervical cancer"! The "three steps" of cervical cancer screening are the "guardian angel" of your health!

According to experts from Yiyang Central Hospital , cervical cancer is the fourth most common female cancer in the world and one of the most preventable cancers. Cervical cancer is most likely to become the first cancer to be eliminated in history.

1. “I don’t have any problems and I don’t have any pain, so I don’t need cervical cancer screening.”

The main purpose of cervical cancer screening is to screen out people with precancerous lesions and early cancers, but precancerous lesions and early cervical cancer have no obvious symptoms and signs, no pain or other physical manifestations, and are not easy to detect by oneself.

Some patients also have abnormal vaginal discharge or bleeding during sexual intercourse or gynecological examinations. During the examination, the cervix may be smooth, or it may have erythema or erosion. Therefore, it is not possible to say "If you feel that you have no problem, you will not be screened."

2. “I don’t dare to do cervical cancer screening. It hurts just thinking about it.”

Cervical cancer screening is the same as a gynecological examination. The doctor uses a special, soft, short cervical sampling brush to collect samples from the cervical transformation zone. There may be a small amount of bleeding and slight discomfort, but no obvious pain and no damage.

3. “I’ve had the HPV vaccine, so I don’t need to be screened anymore.”

Currently, there are three types of HPV vaccines in my country: bivalent, quadrivalent, and nonavalent, which cannot fully cover high-risk HPV types. After vaccination, cervical cancer screening is still required as usual.

How to do cervical cancer screening?

1. Cervical cancer screening "part one"

The "first step" of cervical cancer screening refers to HPV testing/cervical cytology (TCT). Screening of healthy people is mainly in the first step.

1. HPV (human papillomavirus) : It is divided into two types: low-risk and high-risk. The low-risk type can generally be eliminated by the body's own immune system, while the high-risk type requires further colposcopy.

2. TCT (Thin Layer Liquid-Based Cytology) : If the result is no intraepithelial lesion cells or malignant cells (NILM), no special treatment is required. If the result is atypical squamous cells or squamous intraepithelial lesions, a colposcopy should be performed in time, and a cervical biopsy should be performed if necessary.

2. Cervical cancer screening "two steps"

The "second step" (second stage) of cervical cancer screening refers to a colposcopy, which identifies whether the tissue is abnormal under the microscope. It can determine the source of the abnormal cells in the first stage and take tissue for biopsy.

3. Cervical cancer screening "trilogy"

The "trilogy" (third step) of cervical cancer screening refers to histopathology and immunohistochemistry examinations, which are the final diagnostic tests for cervical cancer.

Cervical cancer screening is one of the important means to prevent cervical cancer. Through regular screening, lesions can be detected at an early stage, so that timely intervention and treatment can be carried out to improve the cure rate. In addition, cervical cancer screening can also help women to improve their understanding and attention to cervical cancer and promote the improvement of women's health awareness.

References

Chinese cervical cancer screening guidelines 2024

Hunan Medical Chat Special Author: Zhang Fan from Yiyang Central Hospital

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(Edited by YT)