Avera Medical Minute: Identifying and preventing gynecologic cancer

SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (Dakota News Now) - In honor of Cervix Cancer Awareness Month, Dr. David Starks with Avera Health spoke about gynecologic cancers, which are rare and, therefore, not necessarily on everyone’s mind.

“There’s about 14,000 new cervix cancers diagnosed on a yearly basis in the United States,” said Dr. Starks. “Cancers like an ovary cancer, but there is no good streaming modalities for the general population as opposed to say, you know, breast cancer with mammograms or colonoscopy use for colon cancer.”

Dr. Starks’s advice for preventing such cancers from developing includes getting the HPV vaccine, getting a pap smear screening between the years of 11 and 26, avoiding risky sexual activity, and avoiding smoking.