Will female cervical erosion lead to cervical cancer? The key to treating cervical cancer is to start early

Cervical erosion is an extremely common disease, which may have symptoms such as intermenstrual bleeding, contact bleeding, increased vaginal discharge, etc. During examination, there are small bright red particles around the external opening of the cervix, which usually bleeds after wiping.

Cervical erosion refers to the outward appearance of the columnar epithelium in the female cervical canal, replacing the squamous epithelium of the cervix. When the doctor examines, he will find that the cervix is ​​locally congested and appears red. Many women are terrified when they learn that they have cervical erosion, and think that they will soon get cervical cancer. In fact, there is no need to worry. There is no necessary connection between cervical erosion and cervical cancer. Most married and even unmarried women have suffered from cervical erosion to varying degrees, but have not developed cervical cancer.

In fact, cervical erosion is not really "rotten". It can be a physiological phenomenon or a common inflammatory state. Under the action of estrogen, women of childbearing age will have the columnar epithelium in the cervical canal everted and replaced with the squamous epithelium of the cervix, which will appear "eroded". Before puberty and during menopause, women have relatively low estrogen levels in their bodies, so "erosion" is rare.

Of course, this does not mean that you don't have to worry if you have cervical erosion. You should know that early cervical cancer is very similar in appearance to cervical erosion and is easy to confuse. Once discovered, further cytological examination and biopsy are still necessary to make a clear diagnosis, rule out the possibility of cervical cancer, and provide correct treatment.

"Clues" need to be vigilant for cervical cancer

Patients with early cervical cancer often have no symptoms or only a small amount of contact bleeding, which is not significantly different from cervical erosion. Patients with advanced cervical cancer mainly show irregular vaginal bleeding, increased vaginal discharge and pain.

Vaginal bleeding: Patients with cervical cancer may experience contact bleeding after sexual intercourse or gynecological examinations, or irregular vaginal bleeding. When the lesion is large and erodes large blood vessels and causes them to rupture, heavy bleeding or even fatal bleeding may occur. Elderly patients often experience postmenopausal vaginal bleeding.

Vaginal discharge: Patients with cervical cancer have increased vaginal discharge that is white or bloody, thin and watery or rice-water-like, and has a fishy odor. If the tumor is necrotic and infected, there may be pus-like or rice-water-like foul-smelling discharge.

Pain: It is a symptom of advanced cervical cancer. Patients may experience sciatica or persistent pain in the sacroiliac region. If the tumor compresses or erodes the ureter and causes obstruction, low back pain may occur. Lymphatic obstruction may cause edema and pain in the lower limbs.

Symptoms caused by invasion of adjacent organs: Cervical cancer involving the urinary tract may cause frequent urination, hematuria, dysuria, hydronephrosis, vesicovaginal fistula, uremia, etc.; involving the rectum may cause constipation, anal distension, intestinal obstruction, tenesmus, bloody stools, rectovaginal fistula, etc.

Cachexia: When cervical cancer develops to the late stage, patients may experience weight loss, fever, and general exhaustion.

Signs

Cervical intraepithelial neoplasia and early cervical cancer may only show symptoms of cervical erosion. Exophytic cervical cancer may show polyp-like, papillary, and cauliflower-like growths on the cervix. They are brittle, easily bleed when touched, and may be complicated by infection. Endophytic cervical cancer may show hypertrophy and hardness of the cervix, and the cervix is ​​enlarged and barrel-shaped.

In late-stage patients, cancerous tissue necroses and falls off, forming ulcers or cavities. When the cancer infiltrates the vaginal wall, vegetation can be seen on the vaginal wall. If it infiltrates to the parauterine part, thickening and nodularity can be felt on both sides of the uterus, and sometimes the infiltration reaches the pelvic wall, forming a "frozen pelvis."

The key to treating cervical cancer lies in "three early"

Malignant tumors can occur in any part of the female genitals, and genital malignant tumors are the most common malignant tumors in women. Among genital malignant tumors, cervical cancer accounts for more than half of the total number and is the most common. The incidence of ovarian malignant tumors and endometrial cancer is lower. These three female genital malignant tumors are usually called the "three gynecological cancers."

In fact, among the "three gynecological cancers", ovarian malignant tumors, which rank second in incidence to cervical cancer, are the most dangerous. Why? Because they are located in a hidden anatomical location, there is still no perfect early diagnosis method, metastasis is early and the treatment effect is poor in the late stage, and the mortality rate is much higher than the other two cancers.

If cervical cancer is treated at stage 0 or 1, the 5-year survival rate can reach more than 95%. The so-called 5-year survival rate refers to the survival time of the patient reaching or exceeding 5 years from the time of diagnosis. The calculation of the "5-year survival rate" is based on the treatment of various malignant tumors, not that you can only live for 5 years. The key to treating cervical cancer lies in the "three earlys": early detection, early diagnosis and early treatment.