Many doctors now believe that the best way to test for cervical cancer is to look for something else entirely. And that is
HPV - short for human papilloma virus.
Indeed, studies now show that certain strains of this virus are present in virtually 100 percent of all cases of cervical cancer.
As such, the most accurate way to detect cervical cancer may be to test for HPV - particularly if you are sexually active.
What's sex got to do with it ?
HPV is, in fact, a sexually transmitted disease. Because links to cervical cancer are so strong, HPV is also considered the first sexually transmitted cancer.
Indeed, studies show that nearly one in five American women betwee the ages of 12 and 59 are infected with HPV 16 - the strain of the virus most closely associated with cervical cancer.
While some forms of HPV cause genital warts, usually, these are the least virulent strains - and not likely to cause cancer.
The more deadly form - which accounts for up to half of all cases of cerfical cancer - frequently has no symptoms , which is one reason it can be so dangerous.
Although HPV does account for a good many of the cases of cervical cancer, studies show that many women and some men appear to develop antibodies against the virus - with immune system activity that appears to stamp out the infection before cancer can develop.
As such, experts from the American Cancer Society now suggest another, even more common sexually transmitted disease may also play a role in the development of cervical cancer.
According to research published in the Journal of the Nati Cancer Institute in 2002, researchers contend that some women infected with HSV-2 - short for Herpes Simplex Virus 2 , the disease that causes genital herpes - also appear to be at risk for cervical cancer - even if they are not infected with HPV.
The study, which included over 2,000 women, found that those who harbored both the HSV and HPV viruses were nearly twice as likely to also have cervical cancer, as those women who simply carried the HPV alone.
Although the specific link between genital herpes (HSV) and cervical cancer is still considered preliminary, doctors do agree that when you are sexually active, and your risk of HPV increases, your risk for cervical cancer also rises.
For this reason, being tested for HPV along with your regular Pap smear, could be the one-two punch you need to remain smart, sexy and healthy for life !
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