Cervical Dysplasia
Cervical cancer is the result of genetic mutations that occur in cervical cells leading them to grow abnormally quick. As the National Cancer Institute explains, before cells in the cervix become cancerous they form a precancerous condition called cervical dysplasia, which is characterized by the cells developing genetic abnormalities without being fully cancerous. If untreated, cervical dysplasia can develop into cervical cancer, but if caught in this precancerous stage the damaged cells can be removed before they become cancerous. Cervical dysplasia can be diagnosed in women using a pap smear.
HPV and Cervical Cancer
As the American Cancer Society explains, doctors now believe that all cases of cervical cancer are the result of infections from the human papillomavirus (HPV). HPV is a commonly spread sexually transmitted virus that can infect cells of the throat, mouth, skin, genitals and anus. There are over 100 strains of HPV, and only some of them are commonly associated with cervical cancer (causing them to be known as high-risk strains). The American Cancer Society notes that two-thirds of all cases of cervical cancer occur in women who have been infected with HPV strains 16 and 18, though there are a few other high risk strains as well.
HPV Mechanism
HPV is able to cause genetic changes in the cells that it infects. Most HPV infections do not lead to cervical cancer, because the body is able to fight off the infection. However, in women for whom the virus is able to persist, the virus causes changes in the DNA of the cervical cells. These genetic changes lead to cervical dysplasia and can continue to make the cells cancerous. Cancerous cervical cells grow uncontrollably and also have the ability to spread throughout the body into other tissues, which is known as metastasis.
