The taboo surrounding cervical screening
WOMEN are still hesitant to attend life-saving cervical cancer screening, according to a leading UK cervical cancer charity.
Cervical screening is offered to help detect any abnormal cell changes in the cervix, helping to prevent cancer later developing.
The NHS states that cervical screening saves as many as 5,000 lives from cancer each year in the UK.
So why are many women still not attending their appointments?
Elements of embarrassment, fear or lack of knowledge of the importance of attending a cervical screening are just some of the reasons that see many women at risk of developing cervical cancer if abnormal cells are not detected at an early stage.
A 32-year-old admin assistant said: “I had my first cervical screening at 24 and they found severe cell changes and high-grade Dyskaryosis (a type of HPV). I had a treatment that removed part of the cervix but I had no symptoms, so it only would have been found on the screening. If I had skipped it, it wouldn’t have taken long to turn cancerous.”
Cervical screenings are offered to women aged 25 - 49 years every three years, and women aged 50 - 64 years every five years. This cervical screening (also known as a ‘smear test’) looks for abnormal cell changes in the cervix and also a virus called High-Risk HPV.
A survey carried out by Jo’s Cervical Cancer Trust (the UK’s leading cervical cancer charity) with over 2,000 women in the UK, revealed that one third were too embarrassed to go to regular cervical screenings, with another third of women believing you should only book a screening if you experience any symptoms.
Unaware of the risks it can cause if they do not attend their screenings, studies show that many women in the UK do not have the correct knowledge or understanding surrounding cervical screenings. With it now becoming an increasingly taboo topic of conversation and women not knowing the risk their age group are in. Cervical cancer is one of the most common cancers in women under the age of 35-years.
A 26-year-old teacher explains why she wanted her cervical screening earlier, “Cervical cancer runs in my family and all women on my mum’s side have had it. I wanted to get my cervical screening as soon as possible in case something was wrong, it was really important to me”.
Detecting any abnormal cells early allows for their removal and prevents cells from later developing into cancer.
A charity called The Eve Appeal help encourage, support and talk with women of all ages with any concerns they have regarding their cervical screenings.
During an interview with Gynaecology Cancer Nurse Specialist, Tracie Miles from the Eve Appeal said: “Our main aim is risk prevention for younger and older women. We want to encourage them to go to their cervical screening tests”.
Stating there’s many “multi-factors" to why women don’t go to their screenings. This could be from “lack of understanding or education, or some saying they don’t have time, they have work or simply forgetting to book their screening in. Embarrassment is a big contributor” and also what they call “the fear factor” - some women believe it’s a cancer test and then worry about their results, ultimately not attending their screening because of this.
Cultural issues have also shown a big impact on women not attending their screenings. In certain cultures, there isn’t the understanding or knowledge available.
Cervical screenings also have an unsettling stigma towards them, being seen as a private issue that shouldn’t be spoken about.
Along with this, there’s also a huge stigma with the word HPV (Human Papillomavirus); a common virus found in a women’s cervix. It can be easily treated but if it’s left untreated it can later develop into cervical cancer.
Tracie explains: “There’s a huge stigma around the word ‘HPV’ and people thinking it’s a sexually transmitted disease. It is, but not in the same sense. It gets stigmatised that people have slept around but anyone could get it, at any time. It can lie dominant in the body for 10-years without having any symptoms. It’s just a gynaecology type flu!”
The cervical screening detects HPV in the cervix at early stages, Tracie added: “It is really common for women to have cell changes which result in HPV” and “early detection saves lives”.
Results conducted and shown on the Eve Appeal showed that 97% of cervical cancers were caused from HPV in the cervix.
The NHS adds to this stating: “nearly all cervical cancers are caused by a virus called Human Papillomavirus (HPV). These contribute to changes of cells in the cervix. There are many types of HPV viruses and not all of them lead to cancer. Usually, your body can get rid of the abnormal cells and your cervix returns to normal, but sometimes this doesn’t happen, and the abnormal cells can go on to develop into cancer.”
Girls aged from 12 to 13 are now offered a vaccine to protect them against the types of HPV that cause cervical cancer. But even with the vaccination HPV can still occur.
The NHS also add: “Most women will be infected with HPV at some point in their life”. HPV can infect the cervix without causing any symptoms. “In most cases, the immune system can get rid of the virus without you ever knowing you had it”.
At the Eve Appeal they want to share a true representation and understanding of HPV.
“It needs to be normalised, people need to be educated.
“The more we talk, the more layers we have, creating a greater understanding”.
Throughout gynaecology, the “cervical screening is the most affected screening and is the only screening available for gynaecology”.
Cervical cancer trust, Jo’s Trust, also found: “a further 220,000 women are told every year they have cervical cell changes that may require treatment”.
Further NHS data gathered from 2020 showed 4.6 million women aged 25-64 were invited to attend their cervical screening with only 3.2 million attending those. Leaving more than one million women not attending their screenings in the UK in 2020.
Even without the restrictions of the pandemic, in 2019, one quarter of women in the UK did not attend their cervical screenings.
With a lack of education for young women, along with it not being spoken about openly, many have not attended their cervical screening appointments when they have been available to them.
Combined with the embarrassment or “fear factor” that some women may feel towards their screening, organisations are eager it does not become a taboo topic. Resulting in women feeling comfortable talking to someone about their concerns and ultimately attending their appointments.