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Women's cancers · free patient guide
Cervical cancer
Cancer of the cervix
Gynaecologic oncology clinic
What it is
Almost all cervical cancer is caused by persistent infection with high-risk HPV. The infection is common and usually clears on its own; in a minority it persists and, over years, causes changes that can be detected and treated before cancer develops.
Because that process takes years, screening works exceptionally well here. Most cervical cancer occurs in women who have never been screened.
Cervical cancer remains one of the leading cancers among Indian women, and it is very nearly entirely preventable, through HPV vaccination and screening. That gap between preventable and prevented is the single starkest fact in Indian oncology.
Warning signs worth acting on
- Bleeding after intercourse
- Bleeding between periods, or heavier periods than usual
- Any bleeding after menopause
- Persistent vaginal discharge that is foul-smelling or blood-stained
- Persistent pelvic or lower back pain
- An abnormal cervical screening result that was never followed up
How it is diagnosed
- Cervical screening: Pap smear or HPV test
- Colposcopy to examine the cervix closely
- Biopsy of any abnormal area
- MRI of the pelvis for staging
- Examination under anaesthesia in selected cases
HPV testing is central to screening and to understanding the disease. Tumour profiling is considered in advanced or recurrent disease.
Is it inherited?
Cervical cancer is not inherited. What can run in families is the absence of screening, which is a fixable problem.
Genetic counselling & family risk →
Prevention & early detection
HPV vaccination before exposure, and regular screening afterwards, prevent the great majority of cervical cancer. Both are available here, and the vaccination programme runs on a scheduled recall so it is actually completed.
Treatment options
What may form part of a plan
Which of these apply to you depends on your stage, your pathology, your other health and what you want from treatment. That decision belongs at a tumour board, not on a website.
Surgery
Operability assessment and planning here; the operation at the appropriate partner centre.
Radiotherapy
Targeted radiation to a defined area, planned in millimetres.
Chemotherapy
Drug treatment that acts on rapidly dividing cells throughout the body.
Immunotherapy
Treatment that works on the immune system rather than directly on the tumour.
Targeted therapy
Medicines matched to a specific alteration found in your tumour.
Clinical trials
Most Indian patients never learn a trial exists, because nobody is looking.
At KPCIRC
The pathway for this disease
- HPV-related prevention linked in both directions, your treatment, and vaccination and screening for your family
- Fertility-preservation discussion before treatment where relevant
- Careful sequencing of surgery and chemoradiation
- Sexual health and menopause support after treatment, a conversation almost nobody has
Support that matters most here
Take this with you
Questions to ask your own doctor
These work wherever you are treated. Print the page or take a photograph of this list.
- What stage is this, and what does that change?
- Can my fertility be preserved, and do I need to decide now?
- What will treatment do to menopause and to sex, and who helps with that?
- Should my daughters be vaccinated, and at what age?
This page is not an emergency service. Severe breathlessness, chest pain, uncontrolled bleeding, a high fever during chemotherapy, or a sudden change in alertness means going to your nearest emergency department now, not reading further.