Cervical Cancer Support

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Cervical Cancer Fast Facts

What is HPV and how is it linked to cervical cancer?

  • HPV stands for “human papillomavirus” – a very common virus that an estimated 8 out of every 10 women get by the age of 50. (Men can also get HPV, however it is rare for it to cause serious problems for males.)
  • Certain “high-risk” types of HPV are the cause of cervical cancer.
  • When a woman is not able to fight off an infection with a high-risk type of HPV, abnormal cells may form on the cervix, if they are not detected and treated early, these abnormal cells can develop into cervical cancer.

How do you get HPV?

  • HPV is spread through intimate (genital) skin-to-skin contact, usually during sexual intercourse.
  • Your likelihood of getting HPV increases if you have more than one sexual partner, but you can get the virus from just one person.
  • Once you have the virus, it may not cause any problems. It may simply go away later.
  • However, it also can “hide” in your cervical cells undetected for months or years before it becomes active and causes abnormal cells to form.

How do you know if you have HPV?

  • High-risk HPV does not produce any symptoms. You can have HPV and not know it.
  • The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved a high-risk HPV test for women that can be done along with a Pap. The Digene HPV Test determines whether you have one or more of 13 types of potentially cancer-causing types of the virus. Although HPV itself cannot be treated, knowing you have HPV tells your doctor or nurse to monitor you more closely. (There is currently no FDA-approved HPV test for men.)

Gardasil Vaccine

  • Gardasil is the first HPV vaccine (approved by the FDA in June 2006). It is for girls and women ages 9-26.
  • The Gardasil vaccine may help guard against diseases that are causes by HPV Types 6, 11, 16, and 18. These diseases are cervical cancer, cervical abnormalities that can sometimes lead to cervical cancer, and genital warts. HPV Types 16 and 18 cause 70% of cervical cancer cases, and HPV Types 6 and 11 cause 90% of genital wart cases.
  • The Gardasil vaccine is most effective for females who have not yet been exposed to the target types of HPV. The vaccine is not a cure for existing infections.

For more information on HPV, Cervical Cancer or the Gardasil Vaccine please visit the following sites:

Our Mission to Educate

We find that many people do not know or understand HPV, the causes, the symptoms, and the dangers it can impose on the body. We have found that many do not know the link between HPV and cervical cancer… Stephanie’s journey opened all of our eyes and we want to uncover the facts and information about HPV and the Gardasil vaccine.

We are aware that everyone wants to protect their daughters. So many have said they are not going to let their daughters receive the Gardasil vaccine because their daughters are NOT going to have sex before marriage.

However, after much research, we are finding more and more that this vaccine has less to do with protection from them having sex and more to do with protection for our daughters. 80% of women have had HPV and may not have known. That percentage alone says that we need to be protected from the virus. IF you can get your daughter a vaccine that will protect her from cancer, will you do it? We protect our daughters from the chicken pox, from the flu, from polio… countless diseases, why would we not protect them from the cancer that kills so many girls?  And really it’s not IF your daughter is going to have sex, it’s WHEN.

We just want to educate, uncover, and reveal that HPV is the only link to cervical cancer. That over 50% of the women diagnosed with cervical cancer will die. And that there is a vaccination that will protect girls from the suffering that Stephanie endured.

Sharing Stephanie’s story is also very eye opening to many… we just want to make those aware that this cancer CAN be prevented!