Cervical Cancer Can Be Prevented
Cervical Screening should routinely be offered by Primary Care Support to all women over the age of 25. Those between the ages of 25-49 should be invited for a screening every three years with women aged 50-64 being invited every five years.
A recent survey by Jo’s Cervical Cancer Trust has estimated that as many as one in every three women over 50 has not attended their GP for their check up.
Reasons given in the survey for a failure to attend for the important health screening included inconvenient appointment times given, embarrassment and some complained that it is simply too painful.
The Charity believes that by 2040 the cases of cervical cancer will subsequently rise by as much as 16% for the 60-64 year old category.
Cervical Screening is the most effective way of preventing Cervical Cancer and this worrying trend in a failure to attend regular screening checks could have detrimental effects on those diagnosed at a later stage of the cancer.
At Wolferstans we sadly have experience of cases where despite women having attending their regular checks, additional opportunities to diagnose patients have been missed by Primary Care Support workers including GP’s and Practice Nurses. There are other signs and symptoms that can indicate the presence of Cervical Cancer and would mandate an urgent referral to a Gynaecologist for further investigation.
A failure to refer can result in a delay that has serious implications for the women, with a late stage diagnosis requiring more invasive treatment, poorer health outcomes and increased risk of loss of life.
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