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In Brazil, 50% of women detect precancerous lesions in the uterus at an advanced stage

In Brazil, 50% of women detect precancerous lesions in the uterus at an advanced stage

Annual consultations with a gynecologist for a Pap smear are the best way to prevent cancer.

Photo: Freepik

Annual consultations with a gynecologist for a Pap smear are the best way to prevent cancer. (photo: Freepik)

The Cancer Foundation has developed an unprecedented survey showing that 50% of cervical cancer cases – precancerous lesions caused by HPV – are diagnosed at an advanced stage in Brazil.

According to the document, these data indicate defects in the early diagnosis of this type of tumor, which directly means a higher mortality rate and a lower survival rate for women with this disease.

Luiz Antonio Santini, former director of the Inca Institute (National Cancer Institute) and researcher associated with the Fiocruz Center for Strategic Studies (Osvaldo Cruz Foundation) emphasized: “Cervical cancer is directly related to HPV. It is worth noting that there is no relationship between cervical cancer and aging population, but with a lack of early detection, timely diagnosis and treatment.”

The survey analyzed 174,952 women, 112,823 with cervical cancer, and 62,129 with HPV, and looked at databases sent by more than 300 hospitals to the Integrador de Registros Hospitalares de Câncer (iRHC), from 2005 to 2019.

Cervical cancer is a public health problem in Brazil and is among the five diseases with the highest incidence among Brazilian women. It is the fourth leading cause of cancer death in women in the country.

The annual death rate from cervical cancer in Brazil is about 4.6 women per 100,000. In some developed countries, such as Australia and New Zealand, there are no records of women dying of cervical cancer. In other cases, the numbers are much smaller, such as in the United States, where the index is 2.2 per 100,000.

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The higher death toll, even in the case of cancer with a high cure rate, is also due to delays in treatment. Research conducted by the Cancer Foundation revealed that 65.8% of women in Brazil take more than 60 days to start treatment.

The researchers used this interval between diagnosis and initiation of treatment because a 2012 law specifies that cancer patients must begin treatment within 60 days of discovery of the disease.

The data is more worrying in the north of the country. The region has the highest incidence of this type of tumor in Brazil: 76 new cases diagnosed per 100,000 women.

Thus, it also has the highest death rate, with the risk of dying three times higher in the northern region, compared to the southeastern region, which has the lowest rate in the country.

Diagnosis and prevention

The main form of prevention for cervical cancer is the HPV vaccine available from SUS (Sistema Único de Saúde) for girls ages 9 to 14 and for boys ages 11 to 14.

The vaccine protects against HPV types 16 and 18, which are responsible for 70% of cervical cancer cases, according to the Incas.

“Anyone who is vaccinated has an almost non-existent risk of developing cervical cancer. So vaccination is essential and it is a global campaign, because if everyone is vaccinated it will be possible to eradicate this type of cancer,” said gynecologist Alexandre Boubou, from Sirio Hospitals Lebanon. And Albert Einstein.

Another form of prevention is a Pap smear, which is a routine examination, annually, from the beginning of sexual life.

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