Cervical Cancer Management

  • Cervical Cancer
    Cervical cancer is the second-most common cancer among women. In 2012, 266,000 women died from cervical cancer globally. Approximately 80 per cent of cervical cancers occur in developing countries.
Submitted by PatientsEngage on 6 March 2016

In addition to the treatment options covered in Cervical Cancer Treatment section, it is important to manage the lifestyle aspects as well.

Food and nutrition
Eating right is a key part of cancer treatment. You need to keep your body as strong as possible before, during and after treatment, so you need to take in enough nutrients. Keep the following in mind:

  • Increase your intake of fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and high-fibre foods
  • Up your intake of Vitamin A, which is associated with a lower risk of cancer. Vitamin A plays a role in the differentiation of normal epithelial cells repressing the processes leading to abnormal cell replication. Also take Vitamin B12, Vitamin C, Vitamin E, and beta-carotene.

Physical fitness
Check with your doctor before embarking on an exercise programme. Once you are feeling better and have been given the okay by your doctor, start a moderate stretching and exercise programme. This will help you have more energy throughout the day.

All patients getting cancer treatment are advised to engage in moderate-intensity exercise for two and a half hours every week.

It is important to maintain a healthy body weight. This will come naturally when you begin eating right for your nutritional type and exercising. 

Follow–up care
It is very important that you go for check-ups after your treatment for abnormal cells. In 8 to 26 per cent of women, cervical cancer recurs.
At your first follow-up appointment, you may have a few tests for cervical cancer recurrence. colposcopy or just a liquid based cytology (LBC) test (smear). Cell samples will be sent to the lab to be checked. How often you have appointments and what you have done will depend on how abnormal the cells were and whether they were completely removed. You should expect to have a repeat test about 6 months after your treatment and then a further test about 12 months after your treatment.

Take charge – Your action plan

Be informed: Learn as much as you can about your condition. Talk to your doctor about your condition, treatment and prognosis. Read up about cervical cancer, so you know what questions to ask your doctor. Speak to other patients to find out what treatments and therapies have worked for them. Being informed keeps you in charge of your health and treatment.
Nourish your body: Make sure you are giving your body the nutrition it needs. Eat, even if you don’t feel like it.
Stay positive: Join a support group. Talk to people facing similar challenges. Talk to family and friends about your feelings. Read books that offer encouragement.
Stay focused on your treatment with timely follow-ups and healthy lifestyle

Know your support team: Who can help you stay healthy

  • Medical oncologist
  • Surgeon
  • Radiation oncologist
  • Gynaecologist
  • Dietitian
  • Counsellor or mental health practitioner
  • Other specialists depending on your condition
Community
Cancer
Condition
Cervical Cancer

Stories

  • The Best Tips Come From Cancer Patients and Survivors
    The Best Tips Come From People Who Have Beaten Cancer
    This World Cancer Day, cancer survivors and PatientsEngage contributors share advice based on their lives experience on how best to deal with a cancer diagnosis. #WeCanICan #WorldCancerDay #WCD2018 What would you tell a person who just learned of their cancer diagnosis?’ 1. Dilip Kumar Mevada, Multiple myeloma survivor Cancer so what? You can overcome it. You have to accept and forgive that you have cancer.  If I can survive you can also survive. We are the luckiest human beings to have…
  • Let Us Save Ourselves From Cervical Cancer
    Nearly 72,000 women die in India every year due to cervical cancer. If it goes undetected and untreated, cervical cancer can be life-threatening. We share with you the personal accounts of two cervical cancer survivors and how they have become staunch advocates of the HPV vaccine, starting with their own family and daughters. A specific type of virus called human papilloma virus (HPV) causes almost all of the cases of cervical cancer. Your doctor can screen for this virus and precancerous cells…
  • Protect Yourself and Your Daughter from Cervical Cancer
    Cervical cancer kills one Indian woman every 7 minutes. Mridu Gupta, Chief Operations Officer, CAPED - Cancer Awareness, Prevention and Early Detection Trust, urges every woman to go for regular cervical cancer screening tests and recommends the HPV vaccine for their daughters. January was World Cervical Cancer Awareness Month. But nobody is really aware of the fact and nobody really cares. Its only another cancer in a long list of cancers, isn’t it? No. It isn’t. And you should care. Very much…
  • Effect of Smoking on Fertility: Everything you wanted to know
    Smoking is known to cause and effect many systems in our body with adverse consequences, but how does it affect fertility in women? Dr Sarita Bhalerao, an established OBGYN from Mumbai helps us understand the subject in more detail. 1. Is smoking a growing concern for infertility in women? Smoking and consumption of tobacco have in general been a growing concern for women all over the world. It is a major health problem affecting developing countries especially amongst the youth…
  • Three-time Cancer Survivor Stresses Staying Positive
    B V Lakshmi, who has put up a courageous fight against cancer three times, appreciates life profoundly and says the mind has miraculous power to even change the effect of the DNA. My mother was milking the cow when she had her pains and I was delivered right there in the cow shed in a huge family mansion house in Madurai! That’s why people used to say “Thavuttukku vaangeena pullai”, meaning bought from the cows! I grew up amidst a large family in Chennai. My mother had 16…
  • Does the HPV Vaccination prevent Cervical Cancer?
    Yes. Almost 70% of cervical cancers can be prevented by it, says obstetrician and gynaecologist Dr Chandan Dubey, and strongly advocates that the HPV vaccine be made part of the national immunization programme.  What does screening for cervical cancer involve? Cervical cancer is the most easily preventable gynaecologic cancer because cervix is so accessible to screening. Cervical cancer screening involves 2 tests: Pap smear or liquid based cytology (LBC): This test involves…
  • Cervical Cancer Screening and diagnosis do not occur in the same facility
    "Women are referred to a gynaecologist at a higher facility; this is a major reason for loss to follow-up".  Dr. Suneeta Krishnan shares with PatientsEngage her findings and recommendations of the implementation science research project to promote the adoption and effective scale-up of cervical cancer prevention in India. 1. According to you, which screening method is the most cost-effective? According to the World Health Organization (WHO), screening for cervical cancer through…
  • Cervical Cancer Prevention
    Can cervical cancer be prevented? Cervical cancer starts with precancerous changes to the cervix. You can find and treat precancer with regular Pap tests and HPV tests or you can try to prevent precancer by controlling possible risk factors of Cervical Cancer. Annual Pap test is a must!  This form of cancer can sometimes develop without our knowledge so the biggest self-help tip is to get your regular screening check-ups!  Take the HPV vaccine There are two HPV vaccines (Gardasil…
  • Cervical Cancer Management
    In addition to the treatment options covered in Cervical Cancer Treatment section, it is important to manage the lifestyle aspects as well. Food and nutrition Eating right is a key part of cancer treatment. You need to keep your body as strong as possible before, during and after treatment, so you need to take in enough nutrients. Keep the following in mind: Increase your intake of fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and high-fibre foods Up your intake of Vitamin A, which is associated with a…
  • Cervical Cancer Tests and Diagnosis
    There are many tests that may be done to detect and confirm Cervical Cancer Medical history and physical exam: First, the doctor will ask you about your personal and family medical history. This includes information related to risk factors of cervical cancer and symptoms of cervical cancer. He or she will do a complete physical exam. The doctor will do a pelvic exam and may do a Pap test if one has not already been done. In addition, your lymph nodes will be checked closely for evidence of…

Latest Stories

Booklet