How common cervical cancer is
Around 3,100 women are diagnosed with cervical cancer in the UK each year. Overall, about 2 out of every 100 cancers diagnosed in women (2%) are cervical cancers. But it is the most common cancer in women under 35 years old.
More than 4 million women are invited for cervical screening each year in England. Around 1 in 100 women screened has a moderate or high grade abnormality (1%). Early treatment can prevent these cervical changes developing into cancer.
What a risk factor is
Anything that increases your risk of getting a disease is called a risk factor. Different cancers have different risk factors. This page discusses the risk factors for cervical cancer. Even if you have one or more of the risk factors below, it does not mean that you will definitely get cervical cancer.
HPV infection
Human papilloma virus (HPV) is the major cause of the main types of cervical cancer – squamous cell cancer and adenocarcinoma. There are over 100 different types of human papilloma virus (HPV). At least 40 types are passed on through sexual contact. Some types are called the wart virus or genital wart virus because they cause genital warts. The types of HPV that cause warts do not usually cause cell changes that develop into cancer.
At least 15 types of HPV are considered high risk for cancer of the cervix - they include types 16 and 18. These 2 types cause about 7 out of 10 cancers of the cervix (70%). If you have persistent infections with high risk types of HPV, you are more at risk of developing pre cancerous cervical cellsor cervical cancer.
HPV is common. Most sexually active women will come into contact with at least one type of HPV during their lifetime. But for most the virus causes no harm and goes away on its own. So other factors must be needed for cancer to develop. If men use a condom during penetrative sex, this reduces the risk of a woman becoming infected with HPV.
There are now vaccines to prevent HPV infection. All girls aged 12 or 13 in the UK are routinely offered the HPV vaccine at school. These vaccines protect against the strains of HPV that are most likely to cause cervical cancer. But they don't protect against all strains. It will take some years before the introduction of the
