
How Is Cervical Cancer Treated?
If you have been diagnosed with cervical cancer, your doctor will most likely refer you to a gynecologic oncologist. If they don't, ask to be referred. A GynOnc specializes in gynecologic cancers including cervical cancer.
Treating cervical cancer takes many different factors into consideration. What stage is the cervical cancer? Do you want to still have children? Is this a recurrent cervical cancer? Your doctor will work with you to develop a treatment plan that is right for you. In general, some options to be considered are:
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Surgery - surgery is utilized in both cases of pre-cancers and cancers. For pre-cancers, there are two types of procedures that can be used.
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Pre-Cancer Ablation - this procedure destroys cervical tissue with cold temperatures or with a laser rather than removing the tissue
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Pre-Cancer Excisional (conization) - this procedure cuts out and removes the pre-cancer
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Cancer Simple hysterectomy - removal of the uterus which includes the cervix
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Cancer Radical Hysterectomy - removal of the uterus along with tissues next to the uterus
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Cancer Trachelectomy - removal of the cervix and upper part of the vagina. This type of surgery still give women the ability to have children
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Cancer Pelvic exenteration - this surgery is done for specific cases of recurrent cervical cancer. This surgery removes all that is included in a radical hysterectomy and also pelvic lymph nodes dissection. Depending on where the cancer has spread, the bladder, vagina, rectum, and part of the colon may also be removed
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Radiation therapy
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Chemotherapy
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Targeted therapy
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Immunotherapy
If you are diagnosed with gynecologic cancer you may want to take part in a Clinical Trial. Clinical Trials use new treatment options to see if they are safe and effective. Therefore, you would be receiving cutting-edge treatment and advancing medicine forward for all!
Women's Cancer Research Foundation has numerous open clinical trials. If you do not see a Clinical Trial in our queue, here are a few other sites to visit for Clinical Trials.