A Pap smear is routinely used to screen women for cervical cancer or abnormal cervical cells which may develop into cancer, called cervical dysplasia. A woman with an abnormal Pap smear usually undergoes additional testing, such as a cervical...
Cervical dysplasia is a condition where the cells of the cervix grow abnormally. It is a precancerous condition with three stages: CIN I---mild dysplasia where only the lower third of the cells are abnormal, CIN II---moderate, where up to two...
The cervix is at the lower, narrow end of the uterus. It leads from the uterus to the vagina. Cervical cancer usually develops very slowly over a period of time. Prior to the cervical cells becoming cancerous, they go through changes known as...
A cone biopsy is a surgical procedure in which a cone-shaped sample of the cervix is removed for analysis. It's usually performed to diagnose or rule out cervical cancer, particularly when a Pap test has revealed abnormal cells, but may also be...
Pap smears are a common screening test that can be used to detect changes in the cervix that may lead to cervical cancer. One of the main causes of cervical cancer is an infection with the human papillomavirus, also known as HPV. As a result, many...
The cervix is the lower cone-shaped portion of the uterus, and is part of the female reproductive system. Cervical cancer is diagnosed in 11,000 women a year in the United States, according to the National Cancer Institute. Many more women have...
The National Institute of Health reports that human papillomavirus, or HPV causes most cases of cervical cancer and dysplasia. Cervical dysplasia refers to a condition characterized by an abnormal growth of cells on the cervix, indicating the...
Precancerous cervical lesions, also called cervical dysplasia, are abnormal cells on the surface of the cervix. Cervical dysplasia is classified as low or high grade. Low grade cervical dysplasia grows slowly and may resolve without treatment, the...
Carcinoma of the cervix is another term for cervical cancer. Cervical cancer occurs when malignant cancer cells begin to grow and multiply within the tissue of the cervix. Signs and symptoms of cervical cancer may include abnormal vaginal...
The cervix is the opening of the uterus and is located in the upper end of the vagina. Cervical dysplasia is a medical condition that occurs when the cells of the cervix change. This abnormal change typically stems from an infection to the cervix....
Surgical abortion is a common surgical procedure performed to end a pregnancy. Surgical abortions usually are performed only during the first trimester of pregnancy, but may be performed at any time throughout a pregnancy if medical emergencies...
Cervical cancer is cancer that originates in the cervix, the lower part of the uterus. After the disease is diagnosed, the cancer is then staged, based on standardized guidelines according to the extent and spread of the cancer. Cervical cancer...
Cervical cancer rates in the United States have dropped since the development of the Papanicolaou test, but in 2010, over 12,000 new diagnoses were made, states the National Cancer Institute. Treatments are available, but many treatments can...
The most common cause of an abnormal Pap smear is the presence of the sexually transmitted human papilloma virus, or HPV, according to the United States Department of Health and Human Services. A Pap smear checks for abnormal changes in the cells...
Cervical carcinoma, or cervical cancer, is cancer of the cervix. The cervix is the bottom area of the uterus just above the vagina. This type of cancer is most often diagnosed in women over the age of 30, according to the Mayo Clinic, and it is...
Cervical cancer is the eighth most common cancer in women in the United States. Most cases of cervical cancer, 80 to 90 percent according to the Mayo Clinic, affect the squamous cells that line the surface of the cervix. When the cancer is at an...
Patients with early stage cervical cancer may have a procedure called a conization, which removes a cone-shaped piece of tissue from the cervix. Patients receive local anesthesia for this surgery. An advantage of conization includes the ability...
Cervical cancer treatment depends upon the stage of cancer development. Cancerous cells are assessed first by a pap smear, followed by a biopsy of the cervical tissue. Disease staging ranges from zero to four. Stage 0 is the precancerous stage...
What is a Pap Smear (or a Papanicolauo's Test)? Pap smears, also called cervical smears, are very important for women who start having sex in their early teens. This may be because the young cervix is more vulnerable to cancerous changes when...
