The National Cancer Institute estimates that in 2009, there will be approximately 11,270 new cases of cervical cancer diagnosed in the United States. The cervix is the lower part of the uterus that connects it to the vagina, and during a pap test, this is the area that is sampled to check for cancer. Cervical cancer is typically slow-growing, which is why annual Pap tests are so effective in detecting early stages of this disease, according to the American Cancer Society.
Stage 0 and Stage I
Stage 0 cervical cancer, also called carcinoma in situ, is when abnormal cells are in the inner lining of the cervix. These cells are highly abnormal and can turn into cancer cells, which can then invade healthy tissue. Stage I cervical cancer is divided into Stage IA and Stage IB, based on how much cancer there is, the National Cancer Institute (NCI) reports. Regardless of the substage, in Stage I cervical cancer, cancer is only in the cervix and has not spread anywhere else. Treatments for these early stages include LEEP (removal of the affected areas), laser surgery, conization, hysterectomy and internal radiation therapy, according to the NCI.
Stage II
In Stage II cervical cancer, the cancer has spread past the cervix, but has not spread to the pelvic wall or the lower third of the vagina, the NCI reports. Like the first stage, Stage II has substages; Stage IIA and IIB. Stage IIA consists of cancer that has spread to the top two-thirds of the vagina, but has not reached surrounding tissues of the uterus, according to the NCI. In Stage IIB, the conditions for IIA have been met, but the cancer has also spread to the tissues surrounding the uterus.
Stage IIA cervical cancer can be treated with internal and external radiation plus chemotherapy, radical hysterectomy and removal of lymph nodes, and radical hysterectomy and lymph node dissection plus radiation and chemotherapy, the NCI reports. Stage IIB is typically treated with internal and external radiation plus chemotherapy.
Stage III
Stage III cervical cancer has spread to the last third of the vagina and possibly the pelvic wall, and has possibly impaired kidney function, according to the American Cancer Society. In Stage IIIA, the cancer is not in the pelvic wall. In Stage IIIB, the cancer has either spread to the pelvic wall, and/or the cancer has gotten so big that it blocks the ureters, which impairs kidney function. In Stage IIIB, cancer may have also reached pelvic lymph nodes. Treatment for this stage of cervical cancer typically involves internal and external radiation and chemotherapy, the NCI reports.
Stage IV
Stage IV cervical cancer is the most advanced stage. At this stage, cervical cancer has spread to the bladder, rectum or other organs in the body, according to the NCI. Stage IVA and IVB are differentiated by the amount of spread.
Internal and external radiation plus chemotherapy are typical treatments for this stage of cancer, although palliative treatment to relieve symptoms of cancer may also be done, the NCI reports.
