If caught early enough, treatment consists of removing the cancer cells through a biopsy or surgery. In some cases, women may undergo a hysterectomy — removal of the entire uterus.
If the cancer is present throughout the cervix, or if it has metastasized or spread beyond the point of origin, several different treatments may be required. A hysterectomy is often performed and some patients may even require a radical hysterectomy in which part of the vagina and nearby lymph nodes are also taken out.
To destroy remaining cancer cells, radiation and chemotherapy are used. For example, a common chemotherapy agent is cisplatin. In the process of killing cancer cells, these treatments can be very damaging to normal cells, which is why there are many debilitating side effects associated with their use. Some of the side effects from chemotherapy include nausea and hair loss.
Two vaccines, marketed as Gardasil and Cervarix, protect against the most common strains of HPV. Both are indicated for cervical cancer prevention in 11- to 12-year-old girls, as well as females between 13 and 26 who have never had the vaccine.
In the long term, the vaccine is expected to decrease cervical cancer rates.
Gardasil may be used in boys and men aged 9 to 26 for protection against genital warts. Boys who get the vaccine may also help prevent transmission among girls. Moreover, Gardasil decreases the rate of a rare penile cancer in boys, and can protect gay men against HPV-related cancers, such as anal cancer and certain throat cancers, Maiman said.
In addition to these vaccines, women still have to be screened even if they receive the HPV vaccine. Experts recommend that all women over the age of 21, and younger women who are sexually active, should speak with a physician about scheduling regular Pap tests.
Some scientists believe that in addition to the Pap test, the HPV DNA test should become a primary test for cervical cancer screening as well, especially in older women.
