CERVICAL CANCER: IMPACT OF 7 SUPER FOODS AS A WEAPON AGAINST CERVICAL CANCER

Introduction

Cervical cancer is considered as a common gynecological cancer. According to American Cancer Society revealed that around 14000 people receive cervical cancer diagnosis in 2022.  Cervical cancer in almost 99.7% cases is caused due to Human Papillomavirus which is also named as HPV. Early detection may help manifold to get rid of it. However, vaccine against cervical cancer is also available and is considered effective.

What is Cervical Cancer?

Cervical cancer takes place due to abnormality of cells present in cervix.  Cervix is basically a lower portion of uterus which is connected to vagina. Actually due to certain nominal variations in DNA stimulate cells to multiply aggressively and most of times gets out of control which produce growth which are known as tumors.

According to WHO (World Health Organization) cervical cancer is 6^th most common type of cancer in Eastern regions. According to reports around 89800 women were diagnosed with it and almost 47500 women died.

Fortunately, due to medical technological advancement cervical cancers could be easily and prematurely identified especially through Pap tests. Cervical cancer, therefore, today are treatable.

Understanding Cervical Cancer

It begins in the cervix which is at the bottom of the uterus.  The cervix behaves like a gatekeeper for a woman when she is pregnant and helps hold the baby inside cervical.

Cervical Cancer Causes

It is primarily caused by human papilloma virus. HPV could affect any sexually active person. There’s no stigma in it and there’s no shame in it.

Once a woman contracts HPV, most women will clear it on their own over time but some women for reasons that we don’t understand will continue to be HPV positive and slowly that makes the cells in the cervix become more and more abnormal and in a small fraction of women this will ultimately make a cancer and that’s why we recommend getting pap smears.

It will clear your doctor that if you’re HPV positive and if so, whether you’ve made pre-cancerous cells or not.  It is important to note that some more rare causes of cervical cancer are not caused by HPV but overwhelmingly the majority is caused due to HPV.

Who gets Cervical Cancer?

It is noteworthy that female with cervix has high probability to develop it in later stages of life. Being sexually active is not a sole cause of it but also unwanted sex may also be a reason of it. Secondary, immune compromised females or smokers have a tendency to develop it.

It is still unknown which are the triggers which stimulate it to act abnormally and mutate DNA. However, it is certain that human papilloma virus, or HPV, plays a role. While sexual intercourse there is probability of HPV spread.

Over 85% of the general population has been exposed. But most people with HPV never develop it.

It is recommended to get both the HPV vaccine and regular screening tests. It is further suggested to implement safe sex practices to avoid HPV encounter.

Smoking and weak immunity could expose to more threat towards exposure incident.

Supporting Food against Cervical Cancer

Balanced diet and nutrition really helps in getting high standards of immunity and health. Food is directly related to immunity. The consumption of beta carotene, lutein, zeaxanthin and carotenoid are considered as antioxidants along with vitamin A,C and E are considered beneficial to suppress it effectively. The following foods and dietary routines may help in reducing risk of cervical cancer.

• Foods containing Vitamin E: Leafy green vegetables, nuts and whole grains.
• Foods Containing Vitamin C: Citrus fruits like orange, lemon and lime are considered beneficial along with vegetables.
• Foods Containing Folate: Green vegetables, whole grains and citrus fruits.
• Foods containing Selenium: Nuts, garlic, mushrooms and yeast.
• Foods containing vitamin and beta carotene: Fruits and vegetables like carrots.
• Fish oils
• Coenzymes Q10 antioxidants.

Why Is Cervical Cancer Dangerous?

It is dangerous because it’s sneaky. Because you can’t see your cervix and it’s really hard to actually even feel cervix. So, you could be developing pre-cancerous cells or even a cancer without even knowing it.

Cervical Cancer Symptoms

Unfortunately, the majority of it is asymptomatic. It makes it hard to detect. If one is not coming in for routine checkups from doctor then it could remain unaddressed and may start showing symptoms like bleeding after intercourse, pain, sensation of pelvic pressure or fullness and vaginal discharge.

Prevention from Cervical Cancer

There are two great ways to prevent it and the good news is that we actually cured cervical cancer with a vaccine.  Vaccines are 99% effective in preventing cervical cancer.

It is also important to vaccine boys as well because they could become carriers and may infect partner. Secondly, among males penile cancer is also caused due to HPV.

In addition to this, women or patients with a cervix age 21 or older should get routine pap smears and HPV tests. So, it’s worth repeating that the best news about cervical cancer is that we’ve already cured it.

Vaccines are 99% effective and in a country like the United States, where there’s widespread availability of vaccines one can truly believe that no patient ever needs to get cervical cancer again. But the situation is entirely different among third world or developing countries where the heath care infrastructure has limited capabilities and resources. 

How to diagnose Cervical Cancer?

• It is suggested to start screening at age of 12 years and medical practitioner should collect samples from cervix for further testing. 
•  Pre cancer HPV related DNA testing could help in early detection of disease.
• Pap smear tests are also useful in this context.

The process of these tests is not painful but can be mildly uncomfortable. In case of any suspicion the medical practitioner must undergo more vivid examination of cervix.

Colposcopy is considered a very effective tool for cervical analysis and detection of any abnormalities.  It also provides opportunity to your doctor to take more accurate samples from inside for further testing and diagnosis.

An internal tissue sample could be attained through Punch Biopsy for further diagnosis.

If after this sample collection and analysis, any doubt left behind then doctor could narrow down the analysis an can use LEEP or Cone Biopsy to root out the main cause and make final diagnosis report.

Treatment of Cervical Cancer

The technological advancement and surgical improvements even in the presence of cervical cancer, pregnancy may sustain. Cervical cancer can be classified into three broad categories.

• Pre Cancer
• Early Cancer
• Advanced Cancer

The cancers identified in pre cancer stages are very easy to cure in contrast to other stages, early cancer stages need quick response and aggressive approach to tackle. It is also known as dysplasia. However, if cancer continue to develop and reach the advanced stage then the cure is really hard. Its treatment may become cumbersome and hectic as it may be of combination of chemotherapy and radiation.

Treating cervical cancer isn’t one-size-fits-all. Medical practitioner could employ multiple ways to get thorough picture of your health and may take samples and take tests for more accurate diagnosis.

• For early cervical cancer, doctor may typically treat with surgery to remove the abnormal growths.
• Chemotherapy could be used in case of advanced cases.
• In advanced cases radiations could be employed on affected cancer cells.
• Drug therapy is also given to patient depending upon stage and conditions.
• Finally, there always is an option for immune therapy to strengthen immune system to detect and destroy cancer cells.

There are many new techniques that we can employ to allow a woman or a patient who’s had cervical cancer to be able to retain fertility, be treated for their cervical cancer and still complete a family.

Find support.

Ask for help from your family and friends. If you feel more comfortable expressing yourself in a support group, there are many means available both online and in-person.

It is advised to make certain changes in life style and remain positive. It will not only benefit health but also assist in finding certain life goals. It is also worth mentioning that balanced and healthy diet is also inevitable in these conditions.

This time can be difficult and fatiguing.

Conclusion

Cervical cancer is treatable and has some remedies as well. It should be addressed prematurely that could be more than beneficial but unfortunately it didn’t show symptoms initially and remain silent and asymptomatic.

One must take caution and care and should visit the doctor on regular basis to get assistance and guidance along with the required treatment if required.

In case of advanced stage of cervical cancer, one should control emotions and fight against disease to maintain high standards of courage. The treatment is highly recommended to get health and live a normal life. Vaccination of cervical cancer is available and considered as 99% effective in most of the cases. Females should be encouraged to vaccinate themselves against this disease.

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