Contraceptives and cervical cancer: what you need to know is

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When Amanda Saxon discovered that her father was abnormal, her doctor told her not to worry. A woman as old as herself would have no problem clearing the human papillomavirus, the possible culprit. So the 21-year-old college student from Tampa, Florida, returned to his normal lifestyle. On the other hand, her Pap results were not.

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However, contrary to what Saxon's doctors told her, there is at least some evidence that long-term use of contraceptives can cause persistent or latent viral reactivation, according to Dr. Zeville Castelsagay, Director of Information Services at the WHO/Catalan Institute of Oncology. It has a certain effect. HPV and cervical cancer information centre in Barcelona, Spain. In 2002, the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) published an overview of the high incidence of cervical precancerous lesions and cancers among HPV-positive women who continued to use the drug for five or more years, which has been confirmed by subsequent studies. There was no increase in women taking contraceptives for four years or less.

&Castel Sagay said it was clear that this was a common factor, even though the mechanism was uncertain. However, it is important to emphasize that Saxon and other similar cases are not common. Saxon's doctors were right to think that Saxon would clean himself every step he took.

-Even biopsy itself can stimulate the positive immune response of the cervix and help clear it, & quot; Gunter said.

hpv is the most common sexually transmitted infection in the United States. According to data from the National Cancer Institute, more than half of sexually active people are infected with one or more viruses in their lifetime and cleared of them. At any given time, about 43% of women are infected with hpv. & "Most women tested positive at the age of 23," Gonter said.

Almost all cervical cancer starts with hpv, but scientists are still studying why some women infected with HPV develop cancer, and most of them have no effect. Castellsague said that 90% of the infected people had cleared the virus within two years. It's hard to say why Saxon developed persistent infections and cervical lesions in the remaining 10%. If untreated, it could become cancer. She is young and healthy in other ways. And that's the real problem: at the personal level, it's still impossible to know who will get rid of the virus and who will need further treatment. The occurrence of cervical cancer, like other cancers, is a complex dance of genetic, environmental and other factors. High-risk or carcinogenic viral strains are more likely to cause cervical cancer. (Two of them, 16 and 18, are responsible for almost all HPV-related cancers, as well as vaccines.) But there are many other known factors besides possible contraceptives.

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Castellsague said that although your personal genes do play a role in whether you can eradicate the virus, the immune system is the key. The idea is that when the immune system is suppressed, the virus spreads around and causes trouble, which is why women living with HIV or those taking immunosuppressive drugs for autoimmune diseases are at greater risk of cervical abnormalities. Similarly, smokers are twice as likely to have problems with persistence because of the impact of cigarettes on immunity. The bottom line of

medical advice is to measure the benefits and risks of a strategy based on the most common or most likely events.

&Bratton said: "I would never advise her to stop contraception just because the patient has not cleared hpv." & So far, we have determined that any complications associated with contraceptives, including any impact on the immune system, will increase during pregnancy. We know that the vast majority of women infected with HPV will eliminate the virus by themselves. In most cases, pregnancy is both a greater threat and a more likely threat. If you are taking medicine now, don't panic. Oral contraceptives are still one of the safest and most effective drugs on the market. As long as you get a clean health report in your annual physical examination and regular Pap smear, there's no reason to worry. Your best precaution is to talk to your doctor about the HPV vaccine instead of giving up the pill, no matter how long it takes you. Remember, the pill has no effect on preventing sexually transmitted infections, so don't skip the condom! For women struggling with a lingering and troublesome virus, the official bottom line is that there is insufficient evidence that contraceptive use can definitely help clean up the infection. But as long as you use another reliable method of contraception, it won't hurt you.

Saxon finally chose to switch to condom after defining that she needed surgery. & "It's so frustrating," she said. & Every time [the doctor] says it will get better, but the situation will only get worse. I think it's worth it to help my immune system fight infection even if the chances of stopping medication are small.

Although it is impossible to determine the difference between the switches, Saxon can count at least one of the experts around her: her condition is very rare, but it did happen. & In my opinion, once you have a cervical abnormality for more than a year and it won't disappear, it's a good idea to switch to another method of contraception. Saxon may be an anomalous person, but the fact is, for whatever reason, she's one of the hardest people to control the virus. If there is a slight chance that the pill may play a role in the fight against cancer, why should I take this opportunity? She asked.

Finally, in October 2012, six years later, a series of intrusive tests were conducted.

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