‘Moesha’ Star Yvette Wilson Loses Her Fight With Cervical Cancer

[AOII Angel]

Originally Posted by DeltaBetaBaby

Holy cow, that's scary. Almost nobody dies of cervical cancer anymore. I wonder what went wrong.

She probably was diagnosed late stage. People don't die of the disease because they catch it early.

[DeltaBetaBaby]

Originally Posted by AOII Angel

She probably was diagnosed late stage. People don't die of the disease because they catch it early.

Right, but it's the most easily diagnosed form of cancer. If she didn't have access to regular pap smears, it's a huge tragedy of our healthcare system.

[tinydancer]

So sorry to hear this. My mom died of cervical cancer, it's a terrible disease.

[AOII Angel]

Originally Posted by DeltaBetaBaby

Right, but it's the most easily diagnosed form of cancer. If she didn't have access to regular pap smears, it's a huge tragedy of our healthcare system.

People have access but also just dont get them. Pap smears are great, but they also aren't 100%. I don't know what happened in her case, but for people with the HPV virus, a window of only 5 years is needed in pap smears for someone to miss a cervical cancer. I'm a doctor, and I haven't had a pap in 3 years. That's not our health care system, that's my fault. It's not a priority for a lot of people to go every year when they are young and healthy. That reminds me...

[DeltaBetaBaby]

Originally Posted by AOII Angel

People have access but also just dont get them. Pap smears are great, but they also aren't 100%. I don't know what happened in her case, but for people with the HPV virus, a window of only 5 years is needed in pap smears for someone to miss a cervical cancer. I'm a doctor, and I haven't had a pap in 3 years. That's not our health care system, that's my fault. It's not a priority for a lot of people to go every year when they are young and healthy. That reminds me...

They don't even recommend that most people go every year anymore, and it can be hard to figure out exactly what you need and when. Like I said, though, it's just surprising because it's so rare to see someone die of cervical cancer; it's the cancer that modern(ish) medicine has defanged more than any other type.

[AnotherKD]

I was diagnosed years ago, and have to get checked every 6 months to see if it has come back. It probably will at some point, but at least I should never get to high stages... This is a fantastic reminder that I have to make my next appointment and for all of you girls out there to get checked, even though it is really inconvenient.

[AOII Angel]

Originally Posted by DeltaBetaBaby

They don't even recommend that most people go every year anymore, and it can be hard to figure out exactly what you need and when. Like I said, though, it's just surprising because it's so rare to see someone die of cervical cancer; it's the cancer that modern(ish) medicine has defanged more than any other type.

IF you are in a monogamous relationship and have had three negative pap smears in a row, you can skip three years. Those are big IFs.

[PM_Mama00]

Originally Posted by AOII Angel

IF you are in a monogamous relationship and have had three negative pap smears in a row, you can skip three years. Those are big IFs.

How can you be sure the other person is 100% monogamous?

I've always been taught to go every year and even if you don't HAVE to, it's still nice to have that piece of mind.

[DeltaBetaBaby]

Originally Posted by PM_Mama00

How can you be sure the other person is 100% monogamous?

I've always been taught to go every year and even if you don't HAVE to, it's still nice to have that piece of mind.

As I understand it, cervical cancer is SO slow moving, 99.99% of the time, that even if you contracted a high-risk type of HPV today, you'd probably be just fine having a pap in three years.

[Munchkin03]

Originally Posted by DeltaBetaBaby

They don't even recommend that most people go every year anymore, and it can be hard to figure out exactly what you need and when. Like I said, though, it's just surprising because it's so rare to see someone die of cervical cancer; it's the cancer that modern(ish) medicine has defanged more than any other type.

Even more than prostate cancer?

While some doctors allow people with 3 normal paps in a row and 3 years in a monogamous relationship to do Paps every other year, why risk it? Seriously, why? Most insurance will still cover an annual pap as part of the well-woman exam.

[DeltaBetaBaby]

Originally Posted by Munchkin03

Even more than prostate cancer?

About 7X as many men die from PC in the US as women from CC.

Originally Posted by Munchkin03

While some doctors allow people with 3 normal paps in a row and 3 years in a monogamous relationship to do Paps every other year, why risk it? Seriously, why? Most insurance will still cover an annual pap as part of the well-woman exam.

If your insurance covers it, and you want to do it annually, do it, but the medical community seems to agree that it's not really that necessary. Over-testing can have negative consequences, as well, especially when you look at it from a public health standpoint.

[AOII Angel]

Originally Posted by DeltaBetaBaby

About 7X as many men die from PC in the US as women from CC.



If your insurance covers it, and you want to do it annually, do it, but the medical community seems to agree that it's not really that necessary. Over-testing can have negative consequences, as well, especially when you look at it from a public health standpoint.

Exactly. You can have an abnormal pap smear for reasons other than cervical cancer or pre-cancerous lesions that can cause you to have unnecessary biopsies. Not everyone in monogamous relationships have trust issues. Some people in monogamous relationships should have trust issues. If you aren't in a monogamous relationship, get your yearly pap, otherwise, it has been proven safe to go three years between paps.

[Munchkin03]

Originally Posted by DeltaBetaBaby

About 7X as many men die from PC in the US as women from CC.

But there are 15 times as many PC diagnoses in the US. So, doesn't that mean the mortality rate for cervical cancer is higher than that for prostate cancer? It's probably the case for both types of cancer that early detection would cut the mortality rate even more.