Cervical cancer can be prevented? WHO and Department of Health suggests HPV tests as first-line cervical screening. Learn 4 ways to prevent cervical cancer
2023-07-07
Cervical cancer was the 7th commonest cancer among females in Hong Kong in 2020 - 556 new cases were diagnosed in total and more than 1 new cases per day. It was also the 8th leading cause of female cancer deaths in Hong Kong according to data of 2021. Even though cervical cancer sounds scary to most women, World Health Organization (WHO) recently launched the cervical cancer elimination initiative to have most women screened and treated by 2023 thanks to the development of HPV testing technology.
>95% of cervical cancer are due to the HPV
According to the WHO, more than 95% of cervical cancer are due to the HPV, including HPV 16, 18, 31, 33, 35, 39, 45, 51, 52, 56, 58 and 59, while majority of the cases are due to HPV 16 and 18.
Sexually transmitted HPV can cause no symptoms for up to 10-20 years
HPV is a very common sexually transmitted disease (STD) that can be spread through any intimate skin-to-skin contact, including vaginal–penile sex, penile–anal sex, penile–oral sex, vaginal–oral sex, and use of sex toys or other objects. However, most high-risk HPVs are asymptomatic whereas some of the low-risk HPVs like HPV 6 and 11 can cause genital warts.
Since HPV infection rarely cause symptoms and have a long incubation period (it takes 15-20 years for cervical cancer to develop in women with normal immune systems, and only 5-10 years in those with weakened immune systems), most infections are realized only when precancerous lesion or cancer tumour is developed and missing the golden hour for treatment.
4 ways to prevent cervical cancer
Since most cervical cancers are due to the HPV, HPV prevention is widely recognized as the most effective solution to cervical cancer:
1) Practise safe sex
HPV is so common that almost every sexually active person will get HPV at some point, around half of these infections are with a high-risk HPV type. It is important to use condoms and avoid having multiple sexual partners to reduce the chance of HPV infection.
2) Receive HPV vaccine before initiation of sexual activity
HPV vaccine does not treat existing HPV infections. This is why the vaccine works best when given before any exposure to HPV or initiation of sexual activity.
3) Do not smoke
Smoking weakens our immune system which makes us more prone to HPV infections. Also, nicotine and other carcinogenic substances from cigarettes may damage the genes in cervical cells which increases the risk of precancer or cancer.
4) HPV tests recommended for first-line cervical screening
WHO recommends that HPV test is the most cost-effective technique for cervical screening. Detection of HPV infections that leads to cellular transformation followed by timely treatment can lower the risk of developing over 95% of cervical cancer. Meanwhile, the DH also introduced HPV screening test with higher sensitivity for eligible female clients under its services.
INDICAID HPV Urine Test (with Report)
INDICAID HPV Urine Test is an accurate, private and easy-to-use cervical cancer screening test that detects the presence of HPV. Empowered by the patented PHASiFY technology for urine DNA concentration and Oxford Nanopore Technologies (ONT), the test can detect 27 types of HPV (14 high-risk HPVs and 13 low-risk HPVs) in urine samples, providing you a more efficient, convenient, and comprehensive analysis of your cervical cancer risk.
- • Lower the risk of developing >95% of cervical cancer
- • Non-invasive, private, easy-to-use
- • Suitable for men & women - protect yourself and your partner
- • Sample pick-up / drop-off service
- • Test report in 5 working days
- • Complimentary Pap smear test when high-risk HPV detected
