About five lakh women develop Gynecological Cancer worldwide every year and more than one lakh new patients are diagnosed in India itself. Gynecological cancer is uncontrolled growth and spread of abnormal cells that originate from the reproductive organs.
About five lakh women develop Gynecological Cancer worldwide every year and more than one lakh new patients are diagnosed in India itself. Gynecological cancer is uncontrolled growth and spread of abnormal cells that originate from the reproductive organs.
Types of Gynecological Cancers:
The Gynecological Cancers are of five types, cervical cancer which is the second most common cause of death by cancer in women, it begins in the cervix, which is the lower, narrow end of the uterus.
Ovarian cancer which begins in the ovaries which are located on each side of the uterus. It is of three types, epithelial ovarian cancer, germ cell cancer, and stromal cell cancer.
Uterine Cancer which is also called endometrial cancer which begins in the uterus where the baby grows when she is pregnant. Women with more weight have higher circulating levels of estrogen which increases the risk of Uterine Cancer.
Vaginal cancer originates in the vagina. It is the rare form of gynecological cancer and affects women between 50 to 70 years old.
Vulvar cancer begins in the vulva which is the outer part of the female genital organs. It is a very rare abnormal growth of the external female genitalia which usually occurs in elderly women. Vulvar cancer is curable if it is detected at an early stage.
Symptoms of Gynecological Cancers:
Gynecological cancer does not show any symptoms or signs during its early phase. Later only it begins to show symptoms such as vaginal bleeding, vaginal odor, pain during intercourse, discharge of watery or thick and foul odor, abnormal vaginal discharge, pelvic pain, increased need to urinate, and pain during urination.
Cervical Cancer can be diagnosed through a Pap smear test in which a sample is collected through a pelvic examination. The next level of the confirmatory test is HPV test which is prescribed if any abnormality is found in the Pap smear. Routine Screening is the best way to detect abnormal changes to the reproductive organs before they develop into cancer.
Treatment Options:
The treatment of gynecological cancer is based on its stage, type, and any special situations or unusual conditions. The treatment options include Radiation Therapy, Chemotherapy, Surgery other localized therapies or combination of these therapies. American Oncology Institute is run by a multidisciplinary team of highly qualified and experienced doctors and is equipped with the latest technology for diagnosis and treatment of cancer. Radical Trachelectomy, Total Hysterectomy, Radical Hysterectomy, Chemotherapy, Radiation Therapy which consists of external beam radiotherapy and brachytherapy are some options that are available at American Oncology Institute.
Need for awareness about Gynecological Cancers:
The reason for more women succumbing to Cervical Cancer is due to lack of awareness, early marriage, multiple sexual partners, multiple pregnancies, and poor genital hygiene of both men and women, inadequate health care facilities, lack of testing facilities in rural areas, smoking and the like.
Every year in India, 122,844 women are diagnosed with cervical cancer and 67, 477 die from this disease. It usually affects the women of age around 55-59. HPV prevalence among cervical cancer patients in India has varied from 87.8% to 96.67%. Indian women still shy in talking about cancer, or taking precautions, or getting themselves tested. Cervical cancer is the second-most common cancer in women aged between 15 and 44 years.
In the state of Himachal Pradesh, cervical cancer is a major public health concern since it stands as the number one female cancer as per the annual reports of Regional Cancer Center, Himachal Pradesh for the last ten years. In Chandigarh, the number of incidences of Cervical Cancer is decreasing.
In Jammu & Kashmir, in 2014 the number of women who lost their lives due to Cervical Cancer was 708, and it jumped to 719 in 2015 and 731 in 2016.
Cervical Cancer is the second most prevalent cancer (after breast cancer) in Punjab. According to the report of development of an Atlas of cancer in Punjab state for the years 2012-13, the incidence of Cervical Cancer in Bathinda was the highest with 17.5 followed Mansa 17.3, Faridkot 14.6, Sri Muktsar Sahib 12.7, Mohali 12, Sangrur 11.1, Moga 10.2, Fatehgarh Sahib 10, Amritsar 9.7, Ludhiana 9.4, Jalandhar 9.1, Roop Nagar 8.1, Kapurthala 8 and Hoshiarpur 7.3
Ovarian Cancer is the fourth common cause of death by cancer in women. The benign tumors occurred between 20 and 40 years of age while the malignant tumors occur between 41 and 50 years of age. Ovarian cancer has emerged as one of the most common Gynecological cancer affecting women in India especially women in rural areas and has shown an increase in the incidence rates over the years, said Dr Sandhya Sood, Radiation Oncologist at American Oncology Institute, Ludhiana.
Over the last few years, cancer incidence and mortality rates have fallen where social and economic status has improved. This is due to the implementation of the secondary prevention measures, like screening, early diagnosis, and treatment for pre-cancer and early cancer.
