Screening means checking your body for cancer before you have symptoms. Getting screening tests regularly may find breast, cervical cancers early, when treatment is likely to work best.
- Physical exam. Your doctor may feel areas of your body for lumps that may indicate a tumor.
- Laboratory tests. Laboratory tests, such as urine and blood tests, may help your doctor identify abnormalities that can be caused by cancer
- Routine Per Speculum examination
- Clinical breast exams and regular breast self-exams..
- Transvaginal ultrasound and other imaging tests
Signs of Cancer(not necessary the below signs might be cancer but you need to check out with the doctor)
- Thickening or lump in the breast .
- Unusual pain in the breast.
- Unusual bleeding or discharge.
- Bleeding during intercourse.
- Foul smelling discharge
- Bleeding after Menopause
Whole–body scans can miss signs of cancer. The tests that are recommended—like mammograms—would probably find these signs. A whole–body scan can give you a false sense of security. You may ignore real symptoms if they appear.
- All women age 25 and older should have a formal risk assessment for breast cancer.
- Women with an average risk of breast cancer should start annual screening mammograms at age 40.
- Women with a higher-than-average risk of breast cancer should start annual screening mammograms at an earlier age and should be offered additional imaging each year.
The reality is that every woman is at risk for breast cancer, and this risk tends to increase over time. It’s important to understand and regularly update your health information related to breast cancer risk throughout your life with your doctor. To get the conversation started, here are some points to talk to your doctor about:
- family history of breast or other related cancers (ovarian, melanoma)
- any test results for abnormal genes linked to a high risk of breast cancer
- results of past breast biopsies, even if they were benign
- personal history of being treated with radiation to the face and/or chest before age 30
- breast density
- weight, if you’re overweight or obese
- level of physical activity
- any use of postmenopausal combined hormone replacement therapy (HRT)
- alcohol consumption, if you regularly drink more than 3 alcoholic beverages per week
- the amount of processed food and trans fats you eat
- your smoking history
- whether or not you had a full-term pregnancy or breastfed
Cervical Cancer testing
- Tests are used to screen for different types of cancer when a person does not have symptoms.
- Studies show that screening for cervical cancer helps decrease the number of deaths from the disease.
- A Pap test is commonly used to screen for cervical cancer.
- After certain positive Pap test results, an HPV test may be done or the patient may be advised Cervical biopsy
A Pap test is commonly used to screen for cervical cancer.
A Pap test is a procedure to collect cells from the surface of the cervix and vaginal. A brush, or a small wooden stick is used to gently scrape cells from the cervix and vagina. The cells are viewed under a microscope to find out if they are abnormal. This procedure is also called a Pap smear. A new method of collecting and viewing cells has been developed, in which the cells are placed into a liquid before being placed on a slide. It is not known if the new method will work better than the standard method to reduce the number of deaths from cervical cancer.
- Don’t use tobacco. Using any type of tobacco puts you on a collision course with cancer.
- Eat a healthy diet.
- Maintain a healthy weight and be physically active.
- Protect yourself from the sun.
- Get vaccinated.
- Avoid risky behaviours..
- Get regular medical care.