What you can do to prevent cervical cancer

After years of decline, cervical cancer rates are rising in some demographics in the United States — primarily low-income women and those in their 30s and 40s.   

If the disease spreads in the body, it can prove fatal: Cervical cancer has a five-year survival rate of just 19 percent once it reaches distant organs. But if caught early, it can be treated effectively in most cases — or even stopped in its tracks before it ever develops into cancer. 

Health care workers stress that the disease is almost entirely preventable if the right steps are taken. 

Here's what you can do to protect yourself against it. 

Get the HPV vaccine

The human papillomavirus (HPV), an extremely common sexually transmitted disease, is the main cause of cervical cancer, responsible for nine out of ten cases. 

The release of the first HPV vaccine in 2006, along with more robust screening efforts, has helped drive a generally steady decline in cervical cancer rates for decades. 

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends that kids ages 11 and 12 receive the HPV vaccine to protect them from various cancer-causing strands of the virus before they become sexually active.   

The inoculation is typically administered in two or three doses, depending on the age of the person receiving it.   

Two shots administered six to 12 months apart are given to kids between the ages of 9 and 14, while three shots are sometimes given one to six months apart to teens and young adults between the ages of 15 and 26, according to the CDC.  

Immunocompromised people between the ages of 9 and 26 are also typically given the shot in three doses, as are adults between the ages of 27 and 45.   

The agency recommends that adults 26 years old and younger get the vaccine if they did not receive it in childhood. 

After that age, the vaccine offers less protection.   

This is because “more people in this age range have already been exposed to HPV,” the CDC states on its website.  

HPV is extremely common: roughly 85 percent of sexually active adults contract the virus at some point in their life, according to the CDC.  

For this reason, the agency encourages adults 27 and older to talk to their doctor before getting the inoculation.  

The vaccine can still help adults with HPV by offering protection against different strains, but it does not treat existing infections, according to KFF. 

Get screened

Getting regular cervical cancer screenings is the next best way to prevent the disease. 

Cervical cancer screenings are usually performed during a pelvic exam, which can be done at a walk-in clinic like Planned Parenthood, urgent care clinic, doctor’s office or other health care provider’s office.   

During the exam, a health care worker inserts a small brush into the vagina and essentially scrapes off some tissue from the cervix, which is then sent to a lab to check for diseases like HPV.   

The United States Preventative Service Task Force advises people with cervixes to get their first Pap smear at age 21 and once every three years after that. It also recommends that people between the ages of 30 and 65 take part in a cervical cancer screen by either getting an HPV test every 5 years, getting an HPV test and Pap smear every 5 years or getting a Pap smear every three years.   

Earlier this year, the Food and Drug Administration approved a self-swab test for HPV, so people may soon be able to essentially perform this test themselves in scenarios where undergoing a full pelvic exam is not an option.   

The theory behind screenings is to check for abnormal cells in the cervix so that doctors can treat them before they turn into cancer.

People may soon be able to essentially perform this test themselves in scenarios where undergoing a full pelvic exam is not an option.   

Earlier this year, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issued expanded approvals for self-swab tests for HPV created by medical device companies Becton, Dickinson and Company (BD) and Roche Diagnostics.  

During a self-swab exam, patients are given a device that looks like a large Q-Tip or a tampon which is then inserted into the vagina, rotated a few times and then removed to be sent for testing, according to the MD Anderson Cancer Center.  

“This is not your grandmother’s pap test with the stirrups and the speculum,” said Jeff Andrews, vice president of global medical affairs for diagnostic solutions at BD, in a phone interview with The Hill.

Su Clinica medical center in Brownsville, Texas, launched a pilot program on Nov. 20 that allows low-income Black and Brown women to use the BD self-collect HPV tests, which are currently approved for use in a medical facility. The goal is for the tests to receive FDA approval for at-home use next year, according to Andrews.

Take other steps to reduce HPV risk

HPV is a sexually transmitted infection, so health care professionals encourage people to practice safe sex to minimize their chances of contracting the virus.   

The CDC recommends that people use condoms while having sex to limit their chances of exposure. Both men and women can get HPV, and the virus can be found and passed through contact in areas that are protected by a latex condom or areas that are not covered — but condom use has been linked to a lower risk of developing cervical cancer.   

The agency also encourages people not to smoke or to quit smoking to reduce their chances of getting cervical cancer since the habit weakens the immune system, potentially making some more vulnerable to an existing HPV infection worsening.