Cervical cancer is once more beginning to report a slight increase in incidence after a great deal of years following the introducing and increased use of Pap screenings when it had dropped exponentially. This is maybe because women don't see it at such a threat now that the number of its victims is not so high, but the fact is that the numbers are low exactly because women were aware of the dangers of developing it and were undergoing regular Pap screenings in order to detect any abnormalities at a stage where they are 100% curable.
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More and more cases of cervical cancer are diagnosed later in their development. In order to deal with this many clinical trials are trying out new treatments and new drugs. Clinical trials are done in chemotherapy, radiotherapy, surgery, biological therapies but also HPV vaccines. This last one is an increasingly used and spread method of preventing the cancer by making the organism immune to HPV infections. HPV is a sexually transmitted virus that has been linked to more than 90% of cervical cancers and though it is probably the most important risk factor it can't 100% be deemed as a cause for developing it. There are actually many different HPV strains and only two of them, 16 and 18 have been proven to represent a risk for developing cervical cancer.



Several types of vaccines have already been developed and have been tested or are being tested in clinical trials. Many of them have been reported to prevent precancerous abnormalities in the cervix. UK has been the setting of the majority of cervical cancer clinical trials and HPV vaccination is already given here to all girls with ages between 12 and 13 , as part of a governmental initiative for the well being of the population. Though somewhat controversial the vaccine has gained credibility and the trust of the people and there is now even a "catch up" programme implemented since autumn of 2008 to administer the vaccine to girls who are now alder that 13 but no older than 18.

Closely following the British initiative, a Scottish Executive immunization programme has also begun since September 2008. This vaccine is expected to turn cervical cancer into history and significantly reduce the need for colposcopy.



Gardasil is an example of a cervical cancer vaccine that was approved and licensed for use in the UK in 2007. This vaccine is very effective against HPV strains 6 and 11, but also 16 and 18. Preventing complications from strains 6 and 11 is also important because these can lead to warts and diseases of the genital area. The most commonly used vaccine is however Cervarix. This has been selected for most HPV vaccination programmes and previous studies and trials have proven that Cervarix is successful in preventing precancerous changes in close to 90% of the patients.

What is bacterial vaginosis?  - Bacterial vaginosis (BV) takes place  when the normal numbers of bacteria in the vagina is disrupted and there is proliferation of some of these bacteria. Studies indicate that a woman with bacterial vaginosis more likely to contract various other diseases of the genital tract including risking being vulnerable to the Human Papilloma Virus or HPV that can later cause the dreaded cancer of the cervix. The diagnosis and treatment are therefore important.
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How does contract is bacterial vaginosis?  Bacterial vaginosis occurs when certain types of bacteria normally found in the vagina begin to multiply in abundance. We do not yet know exactly why this change occurs, although it has identified risk factors. Bacterial vaginosis is not transmitted during sexual intercourse.

What are the risk factors for bacterial vaginosis?
Douching, use of feminine hygiene products (such as bombs and towels vaginal) and bubble baths can cause the VB. Although VB is not an STD, it is possible that sex without a condom the causes or worsens because of the effect of semen on bacteria in the vagina. It seems that having an STD increases the risk of VB up to 64% of women with STDs are also suffering from VB, compared to 10 to 20% of all women.

How can people protect themselves against bacterial vaginosis?  To reduce the risk of contracting bacterial vaginosis:
* Avoid douching and using other feminine hygiene products.
* Use condoms during sex.
* Clean the reusable contraceptives (such as diaphragms, cervical caps and spermicide applicators) after each use.

What are some symptoms of bacterial vaginosis? Some women show no symptoms. When symptoms exist, they include:
* Abnormal vaginal discharge has an unpleasant odor;
* Itching or vaginal irritation.

Bacterial vaginosis can it cause other health problems? Bacterial vaginosis increases the risk of a woman to contract other diseases of the genital tract, including:
* Pelvic inflammatory disease (PID) in the presence of chlamydia or
gonorrhea;
* Infection after vaginal surgery or abortion.

What is the effect of bacterial vaginosis in pregnancy?  Bacterial vaginosis is associated with labor and preterm delivery in pregnant women and underweight at birth in the newborn.

How does diagnosis is bacterial vaginosis? The diagnosis of bacterial vaginosis the most commonly established by examining the vaginal discharge to assess the acidity, odor and microscopic characteristics.

Is there a cure for bacterial vaginosis?  Bacterial vaginosis is easily treated with antibiotics, usually a drug called metronidazole (Flagyl). This drug causes side effects such as mild nausea, vomiting and a metallic taste.However, for the treatment to act, it is important to take medications as prescribed. The remedy also causes a bad reaction when taking alcohol, drink only 24 hours after treatment. Do not use the drug in early pregnancy. We do not routinely treating male partners of women with VB because it did not affect the healing of disease or the possibility of reinfection.

Cervical cancer treatment has many types and it usually includes more therapeutic methods, depending on the clinical stage of the sickness. The treatment methods are the following: surgery, chemotherapy, radiotherapy, hormonotherapy, biologic therapy and genetic therapy (it is yet in study).

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These therapeutically methods can be associated with one another in order to obtain the best therapeutic result possible. The purpose of the oncologic therapy can be the recovery (curability), the staging of the sickness, continuation of the survival, the continuation of the free interval of sickness or palliation (adjustment of semeiology and improvement of the life’s quality). The therapeutically course is established by the commission of therapeutic decision composed by an oncologist, chemotherapy doctor, radiotherapy doctor, a psychologist and a pathologist.



Choosing the specific treatment is made dependent on the localization of the sickness, the clinical stage, the factors of prognostic, the clinical situation of the patient, the age of the patient, the presence of other sicknesses associated and the patient’s option. The patient must receive all the information about each treatment, the benefits of it, the side effects and not lastly the risks that the patient will assume in case that he/she refuses the recommended treatment.

The oncology treatment includes local and systematic therapy. The local treatment actions over the primary tumor and it involves surgery, radiotherapy, chemotherapy and immuno-therapy. The systematic treatment actions over the primary tumor and over the disseminated cells from the primary tumor to other tissues/organs of the organism. The systematic treatment may involve chemotherapy, hormono-therapy, chemotherapy and cervical cancer – chemotherapy represents the treatment method, which uses citotoxic medicines in order to destroy the malign cells. It is administrated intravenously (the most frequently), on the oral way, intra-arterial, intra-toumoral or intramuscular.

Chemotherapy can be curative (represents the principal modality of treatment), neoadjuvant or pre-operatorial (they have the role to reduce the primary tumour, to improve the loco-regional control of the sickness and to decrease the risk of distance dissemination of the cancer in the case of the patients with un-advantageous prognostic), palliative (has the purpose to improve the life’s quality, reduces the semiology).

Chemotherapy and cervical cancer – chemotherapy is administrated, normally in series/cures of 1 day, 2 days, 3 days or 5 days (there are more complex series, also), each period of the treatment is followed by a period of recovery (3-4 weeks). There can be used more cytostatics, depending on: localization, hysto-pathological form, clinical stage, the sicknesses associated with the cancer and the option of the doctor.



Side effects of the cytostatics are many, with different grades of severity, temporary or permanent. The secondary effects depend on the cytostatic, on the doses administrated and on the period of the treatment. The most frequent side effects of the cytostatics are: physical asthenia, lost of the alimentary appetite, alopecia (hair lost), nausea and eructation, high risk of infections (by decreasing of the leucocyte’s number), different bleedings (by decreasing the number of the thrombocytes), disorders of the intestinal transit (diarrhea or constipation), anemia, mucositis and allergic reactions. Most of the side effects can be ameliorated by specific treatments and they usually disappear after the chemotherapy ends.