Monday, February 26, 2007

PREVENTING CERVICAL CANCER THROUGH YOUR SEXUAL HABITS

Rebecca B. Singson, M.D., FPOGS

Over a century ago, it was observed that women who developed cervical cancer were among those with husbands who traveled frequently, or who had penile cancer, or whose wife had died of cervical cancer, or those who fleeted from one sexual partner to another. It was not until the past 2 decades that research has shown that one of the main causes of cervical cancer is a virus called the Human Papillomavirus.1

Cervical cancer is the most common cancer in the female reproductive tract and is the second most common cancer in women next to breast cancer. In Asia, there are 266,000 new cases of cervical cancer diagnosed each year. In 2005, alone our National Cancer Institute statistics reveals that there are 7225 new cases of cervical cancer in the Philippines. The sad thing is that two-thirds of these cases are diagnosed at a late stage when they are beyond the operative stage. So it is not surprising that 32.3% of them die in 1 year and 73% will die in 5 years. The irony is that it is completely preventable, or at least diagnosable before it becomes life threatening.

During the recent Asia Oceania (research organization on) Genital Infection & Neoplasia (AOGIN), world experts on the Human Papilloma Virus and cervical cancer gathered from 18 countries to discuss global initiatives on cervical cancer prevention.

WHAT DO WE KNOW ABOUT THIS VIRUS?

World experts on the Human Papillomavirus from 18 countries gathered recently to organize the Asia Oceania (research organization on) Genital Infection & Neoplasia (AOGIN) to share with each other their latest research on the virus and to discuss global intitiatives on cervical cancer prevention. It was revealed that there are more than 70 distinct site-specific types (meaning they will grow on one part of the body but not on another) of this virus. Of these, about 35 types are found in the anus and the genital areas, causing warts and cervical cancer, the most notorious being types 16 and 18. It is a virus acquired through sexual contact and infects the lining cells of the genitalia and can be detected in 5%-40% of women of reproductive age.2 It has been found that infections are relatively short-lived lasting usually 8-10 months.3 This indicates that our bodies are indeed capable of clearing the virus which is why in women over 30 years old, the prevalence drops down to 5-10%. Persistent infections, however, are found in 5-10% in women over 35 years old.4 It is in this group of women who are not able to clear the virus from their bodies that cancer in the cervix now has a chance to progress. The virus is apparently able to thrive in the cells without killing it and without inducing any immunologic reaction from the patient. The body therefore “ignores” the virus allowing it to eventually alter the genetic code of the cells. As a result, the cervix starts multiplying cells which become cancerous after many years.

FACTORS THAT INCREASE ONE’S RISK FOR CERVICAL CANCER

It is important to understand the risk factors that increase your chances of acquiring the virus as well as the co-exisiting factors that mediate progression to cancer. In a case-control study of women with invasive cervical cancer in four Latin American countries where they evaluated cervical cancer risk in relation to sexual behavior, histories of specific venereal diseases, and hygiene practices, it was noted that early age at first sexual intercourse and increasing number of sexual partners were associated with significantly increased risk for cervical cancer. Risk increased over twofold among women reporting first intercourse at 14 to 15 years of age compared with those who started after 20 years old.5 An initial pregnancy before 18 yrs. old and multiple pregnancies (over 5) as well as a history of having acquired a sexually transmitted disease (STD) also increase your risk. Having an uncircumcised male partner, cigarette smoking, an impaired immune system (such as AIDS patients), and poor nutrition (diet low on fruits & vegetables and deficient in Vit A, C & folic acid) all increase ones’s risk for cervical cancer. 6

SEXUAL PRACTICES OF THE YOUTH IN THE PHILIPPINES

In the Philippines, the YAFS study 2002 revealed that 1.2% of our youth will have had their 1st sexual contact before 13 yrs old, the youngest reported was at 8 years old. Twelve percent of the females while 28% of the males would have started sexual contact before 18. In fact, 38% of our youth are already in a live-in arrangement. These statistics are disturbing because the youth are engaging in practices that increase their exposure to acquiring the virus that causes cervical cancer.

Is There a Way to Test if You are Positive for the Human Papillomavirus?

Because of advances in our knowledge linking the human papillomavirus to the causation of cervical cancer, it became necessary to develop HPV tests that would indicate if the woman was positive for the high-risk strains of the virus that would increase her risk for cervical cancer. The HPV DNA test using the Hybrid Capture II System, developed by a company called DIGENE, recently came out with a commercially available test which has a sensitivity of >90%1 and a negative predictive value of over 90%8. Available in major hospitals, the test entails taking cervical swabs, much like a Pap smear, using the

brush from the Digene Cervical Sampler. Pap smear collected with a broom collection device and rinsed in the ThinPrep System PreservCyt@ solution may also be used to provide the same specimen for HPV testing. (You see, Pap smears are done in 2 ways: the conventional way is by smearing the cervical swab on a glass slide; the latest way is to use the broom collection device with the ThinPrep System. The latter has the advantage of providing the sample to test for HPV testing in case you deem it necessary. So, you can in fact ask your gynecologist to perform the test when you get your next Pap smear. There have even been been studies in China and in Canada where the women performed the swabs on themselves by inserting the cervical brush intravaginally, trying to reach the cervix, referred to as self-collection which also yielded satisfactory results .

Many recent studies have shown that the combination of HPV DNA test and Pap smear improves the detection rate of pre-cancerous lesions of the cervix compared to Pap smear alone.8-10

WHAT TO DO

It is vital for us to educate our youth that it is prudent for men as well as women to delay having sex as late as possible. This is because the earlier you engage in sexual intercourse, the higher the chances for having multiple sexual partners which will increase the chances of acquiring the carcinogenic Human Papillomavirus. Men should realize that although the virus does not cause much harm to them in general other than occasionally causing unsightly penile warts, through their sexual practices, they can transmit the virus to their unsuspecting, innocent monogamous sexual partners. Engaging in sex early has also been linked to increased number of early, unwanted pregnancies which can also increase chance for the virus to mutate the genetic code (because of the immunocompromised state during pregnancy) of the cell to promote cervical cancer. The youth must know that promiscuity can be potentially lethal if one acquires the HPV virus or worse, AIDS so sex should be limited to a significant other or to one destined to be a lifetime partner. It might help them to know that choosing a circumcised male partner can also decrease one’s risk for cervical cancer.

Once the females start becoming sexually active, she should start seeing a gynecologist. Within 3 years from her first sexual contact, she should start getting Pap smears, which has been the most widely used screening test for cervical cancer. Unfortunately, there are many pitfalls to this since nearly half of specimens miss a cancer in the reading; about one-third of these false-negative readings are attributable to errors in interpreting slides and two-thirds to poor sample collection and slide preparation.11

The Human Papillomaviurs test may be recommended to all women over 30 years and above together with a Pap smear. If both tests run up negative, and the last three Pap smears were normal, you can even defer you next Pap smear test for 3 years because in the absence of the virus, it is unlikely that you will develop cervical cancer in 3 years. If your test turns up positive, you may either opt for a repeat testing in 1 year or go for colposcopy of the cervix to check for possible precancerous changes.

FUTURE THRUSTS

The era has arrived where two major pharmaceuticals (GSK and Merck) are already doing human trials on an HPV vaccines in the hope of reducing the risk for cervical cancer. Hopefully in 2 years, at least one of them will receive FDA approval from the U.S and be commercially available. It is hoped that such vaccines would boost an immune response against the development of cancer or even existing tumors. Preliminary trials of the vaccine have shown some promising success. Hopefully, mass vaccinations at around 10 years old before the woman becomes sexually active can someday help to eradicate a deadly cancer from the face of the earth.

1Jan M. M. Walboomers, et al. Human papillomavirus is a necessary cause of invasive cervical cancer worldwide. The Journal of Pathology, 189: 1, 12-19.
2 Franco EL, Villa LL, Richardson H, Rohan T, Ferenczy A. Epidemiology of cervical human papillomavirus infection. In: Franco EL, Monsonégo J, editors. New developments in cervical cancer screening and prevention. Oxford (UK): Blackwell Science; 1997. p. 14-22.
3Ho GYF, et al. Natural history of cervicovaginal papillomavirus infection in young women. N Engl J Med 1998; 338: 423-28.
4Shah KV, Howley PM Papillomavirus. In: Fields MN, et al, ed. Fields Virology, 3rd edition, Philadelphia: Lippencott Raven, 1988:2077-2109.
5Herrero R, et al. Sexual behavior, venereal diseases, hygiene practices, and invasive cervical cancer in a high-risk population. Cancer. 1990 Jan 15;65(2):380-6.
6www.emoryhealthcare.org/HealthGate/32624.html
7 “Youth, Sex and Risk Behaviors in the Philippines” published by the Demographic Research and Development Foundation (DRDF). For more information, contact Dr. Corazon M. Raymundo, Project Overall Coordinator, YAFS3; e-mail: craymund@psdn.org.ph
8 Ferenczy A, et al. Diagnostic performance of Hybrid Capture human papillomavirus deoxyiribonucleic acid combined with liquid-based cytologic study. Am J Obstet Gynecol. 1966; 175: 651-656.
9 Manos MM, et al. Identifying women with cervical neoplasia using himan papillomavirusDNA testing for equivocal Papanicolau results.JAMA 1999;281:1605-1610.
11 WrightTC, et al. Comparison of management algorithms for the evaluation of women with low-grade cytologic abnormalities. Obstet Gynecol 1995, 85:202-210.

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