How to diagnose cervical cancer - Essay Example

Its symptoms, diagnosis, and ways in which it can be treated are also discussed (Dunleavey 38). Thus, this text will be very effective especially to those who have little or no insight on issues related to cervical cancer. For those already suffering from cervical cancer or those charged with taking care of cervical cancer patients, the article is aimed at educating them on the disease. What is Cervical Cancer? According to Dunvealey, cervical cancer is the third most common cancer affecting women of different ages (38).

Despite the fact that it is not a sexually transmitted disease, its occurrence is linked to a human virus known as the papilloma virus, which is sexually transmitted. When the diagnosis of cervical cancer is conducted early, there are very high chances of survival of the victim and if not, death is inevitable. For example, in the United Kingdom, the national screening has reduced the deaths of the victims of this disease (Dunvealey 38). The most common symptom of cervical cancer is abnormal bleeding, especially between periods, after having intercourse, or during postmenopause.

It is also accompanied by non-appealing vaginal discharge, which is bloody, watery, may be very heavy, and in most cases, has a foul smell. Other signs include lower back pains, dysuria, hematuria, and rectal bleeding (Moini 362). How to Diagnose Cervical Cancer Every cancer has its own methods of diagnosis and treatment. For example, cervical cancer screening is totally different from the screening that happens in cases of breast cancer. The following are different methods used to diagnose cervical cancer: Cervical smear: It is usually performed in order to detect cellular changes.

In this method, cells are gathered from the transformation zone using a spatula together with an endocervical brush. A slide acts as the surface on which samples are smeared onto and then sent for lab analysis. Though this method has the advantage of being simple and cheap, it has been found to possess some imperfections (Dunvealey 38). The most common abnormalities observed after cervical smears are high grade squamous intraepithelial lesions (HSC), low grade squamous intraepithelial lesions (LSC), and abnormal squamous cells of uncertain significance (ASC-US).

The last one is the most common Pap smear finding (Dunvealey 39). Liquid-based Cytology: This method is preferred because of the short comings that come with the cervical smear method. The collection of the sample is done in a way similar to sample collection in the cervical smear method. However, in this method, the spatula’s head is cut and preservative liquid is used to rinse it. This is then transported to the lab and processed to remove the irrelevant materials, and the resultant cellular suspension is transferred to a slide and stained (Dunvealey 38-39).

Though this method is also advanced, it is also not very complicated; it is very practical and quite inexpensive in diagnosing cervical cancer. As seen earlier, the papilloma virus is a major cause of cervical cancer; it brings about the HSC, LSC and ASC-US. It is thought to infect basal cells within the cervix and gain access via minor trauma or at the squamocolumnar junction. Cervical intraepithelial neoplasia, which is a grading system, is used to grade biopsies in