Treatment for Cervical Cancer | Survival Rates | Stages

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What are stages of cervical cancer? How about with the current treatment options and survival rates for this disease? These are some frequently asked questions when people talking about cancer that occurs in the cervix (a lower part of uterus in the female reproductive system)! You may also like to know about signs of cervical cancer in women, before continuing!

Before reading this article, you need to clearly understand that all information & statistics published in this article are only intended and purposed as general guide. Each case of cervical cancer is unique. And therefore for in-depth information, consult more with a doctor!

Current treatment options for cervical cancer

The plan of treatment to treat cervical cancer may be different from person to person. The decision of the treatment is usually associated with several factors, particularly such as; the stage of the disease, characteristics of tumor (its shape and size), age of patient, whether or not patient has a plan for pregnancy, and the overall health of patient.

Surgery, radiation therapy, and chemotherapy are some common choices of the treatment for most stages of this cancer. Read also the crucial points you should concern before taking any treatment for cervical cancer in here!

Some surgery procedures to treat cervical cancer

Cells of cancer in the early stages are relatively easier to be removed /cured than cells of cancer in the later stages.

In the early stages of the disease, simple hysterectomy is one of common choices. It is a kind of surgery to remove uterus and usually without procedure of removing the ovaries -- according to a published article on the official site of the U.S National Library of Medicine.

In many cases, simple hysterectomy is effective enough to cure cervical cancer at early stage. Unfortunately it is not effective option if cells of cancer have spread to other parts of the body. But sometimes doctors may use radical hysterectomy with other treatments for advanced stages of cervical cancer.

Sometimes hysterectomy is also needed in some patients who have repeated procedures of LEEP ‘Loop electrosurgical excision procedure’. LEEP is also one of common choices of the treatment for early stages of cervical cancer. It usually involves appropriately electricity to cure /remove an abnormal tissue.

Other common procedures of surgery for early stages of this cancer are laser therapy and Cryotherapy. As the name suggests, appropriately energy of light laser is used to burn the abnormal tissue in the laser therapy. And for Cryotherapy, it is usually purposed to freeze the abnormal cells. Discuss more with a doctor for in-depth information!

Radiation therapy

This therapy is also intended to kill the cells of cancer. Like hysterectomy, radiation therapy is also one of common choices for early stages of this cancer. But sometimes it also can be used with other treatments (particularly such as chemotherapy) to treat cervical cancer at the advanced stages.

As the name implies, radiation therapy usually involves high-powered energy of radiation to kill and remove the cells of cancer. The radiation can be given internally by positioning the device contained with radioactive material close to the cervix of patient. And with external beam radiation, the radiation also can be given externally.

Chemotherapy

It is a kind of therapy that uses certain drugs to kill /remove the cells of cancer. It may be used alone or with radiation therapy.

When it is used with radiation therapy, it is usually prescribed in low doses because drugs of chemotherapy may increase the effects of the radiation. Higher doses of chemotherapy’s drugs may be only prescribed for advanced cervical cancer or when other treatments fail to cure the cancer cells.

In addition, sometimes chemotherapy and radiation therapy may also be used before or/and after surgery.

Survival rates and stages of cervical cancer

For some patients, knowing the statistics of cervical cancer survival rate may be helpful to keep them motivated to fight the disease. But there are also other patients who may not feel and find these statistics helpful!

Cervical cancer stages

In general, cervical cancer has 4 major stages which include:

1. Stage I (the level that describes the cancer still only occurs in the cervix)! In general, this stage is classified into 2 groups, stage IA and stage IB. Based on the size of the cancer - some experts also classify this stage into 4 phases: stage IA1, IA2, IB1, and IB2. 
2. Stage II (it occurs when the cells of cancer have spread to nearby tissues, but the pelvic walls are usually still not invaded). It is classified into 2 major phases, stage IIA and IIB!
3. Stage III (it describes that the cells of cancer have spread to the lower part of patient’s vagina and pelvic wall). In general, it is divided into 2 major groups; stages IIIA and IIIB!
4. Stage IV! It is a stage when the cells of cancer have spread to distant parts (organs) of the body, particularly such as rectum or bowel or bladder! -- You may also like to read symptoms of bladder cancer!

5-year survival rates

The statistics of 5-year survival rate (it refers to the chance (%) of patients who live at least five years after the disease is diagnosed or found) are equivalent with the stages of the disease (from early stages to later stages). In other words, patients at early stages are more likely to have a better 5-year survival rate than others at later stages.

The following are a helpful table from the American Cancer Society:

(source: cancer.org)

And below are other tables of the estimation for the chance to cure the disease & ‘5-year survival rate’ for each stage of cervical cancer -- according to a published article on official site of the U.K Cancer Research organization (cancerresearchuk.org):

However, there is no statistic of survival rate that can give exact prognosis or can be detailed enough to explain what will happen to you! Once again, every case of cervical cancer is unique -- the same type or stage of cancer may grow at different rates in different patient.

Furthermore, the stage of the disease is not the single factor that influences the prognosis of patients with cervical cancer. For instance, the overall health of patient (performance status ‘PS’ of patient) is another factor that may also influence the prognosis and survival rate. Discuss more with a doctor for more detailed information about these issues!