Abigail Ayindero-Oyenibi, Okene
Women in Kogi State have been advised to ensure routine screening to prevent cervical cancer.
Chief Medical Director of the Reference Hospital Okene, Prof. Solomon Avidime gave the advice while speaking on the need for early detection and treatment of Cervical Cancer against the backdrop of January being declared as Cervical Cancer awareness month by the World Health Organization (WHO).
Prof. Avidime said visiting the hospital for screening of the cervix for any abnormal changes will ensure early detection and treatment that can lead to removal of the disease.
According to him, older women used to suffer from cervical cancer but in recent times it has been prevalent in women between the ages of 35-40 yrs and even in younger ladies who are sexually active.
He explained that the symptoms of cervical cancer include bleeding on sexual contact, heavy bleeding, offensive discharge at advanced stages and vaginal bleeding even after menopause.
The CMD urged women to visit the hospital for check up as soon as they notice any of the symptoms with a view to ascertaining the situation and follow up with necessary treatment .
Prof. Avidime, who noted that routine screening for Cervical cancer is cheap, maintained that those that mostly risk getting infected are women with weak immune system, female smokers, those engaging in sexual activities at an early age and having multiple sexual partners, those with Human Papilloma Virus (HPV) infection and those with poor socioeconomic background among others.
He stated that many cases of cervical cancer get to the hospital at advanced stages when little or nothing can be done to salvage the situation, enjoining women aged 25-45yrs to carry out cervical cancer screening annually, biannually or every 5yrs depending on the risk factor that is observed on the patient.
