Great News for Sexually Active Women

What if I told you that soon we could virtually eliminate cervical cancer?

It's true. In the best women's health news in a while, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has approved a vaccine that could prevent many, if not most, cases of cervical cancer. The vaccine, Gardisil, was successful in preventing nearly 70 percent of cervical cancer cases and 90 percent of genital wart outbreaks when tested. That's some impressive scientific research! Both conditions are caused by the human papillomavirus (HPV), the most common sexually transmitted disease today. Approximately 100 different strains of HPV exist, 30 of which are sexually transmitted and three of which are active in the majority of cervical cancer cases.

The vaccine is good news, since condoms don't completely protect against HPV infection (though they do significantly minimize it). Best of all, if the vaccine is administered before sexual activity begins, the most dangerous HPV infections will never have a chance to occur in the first place.

In addition to this vaccine, getting regular Pap smears and practicing safe sex are the best ways to protect against cervical cancer. It's highly treatable when found early �?yet another reason to have a zero-tolerance policy when it comes to using condoms. If you have HPV, keep in mind that only some strains are considered high-risk �?and even then most never progress to cervical cancer. You can help your chances of avoiding cervical cancer by keeping regular appointments with your gynecologist and by quitting smoking, which has been shown to increase the risk.