Cervical Cancer
Ideas about causes of cervical cancer
Risk factors for cervical cancer include smoking, a weakened immune system, age, HIV, sexually transmitted infections (STIs), taking the contraceptive pill, family history of the disease, and high-risk HPV, which causes almost all main types of cervical cancer (Cancer Research UK, 12 September 2023).
Human papilloma virus (HPV) and cervical cancer
The main risk factor for getting cervical cancer is persistent (long lasting) infection with certain high-risk types of human papilloma virus (HPV) that cause abnormal cell changes in the cervix. High risk HPV affects the cervix and can develop into cervical cancer.
There are more than 100 different types of HPV, many of which are harmless. The types of HPV that can cause warts, genital warts and verrucas are known as ‘low risk’ strains and do not usually cause cell changes or develop into cancer.
It is thought that around 14 strains of high-risk HPVs are responsible for causing cervical cancers and the strains HPV 16 and HPV 18 are known to be responsible for 70% of all cases of cervical cancer (Cancer Research UK, 12 September 2023).
HPV is a common virus that is easily passed on with close skin-to-skin contact, typically during sexual activity. Anyone who has ever had sex is likely to have been infected. However, most people will clear up the virus with their own immune system within 6 months to 2 years.
The risk of getting HPV increases with the number of sexual partners and with starting to have sex at an early age. The risk of having a persistent infection is related to a weakened immune system.
Infection with HPV does not imply either infidelity or promiscuity, as even people who have sex with only one person in their lifetime can get it. Cervical screening and HPV vaccination are the best ways to protect yourself from cervical cancer (NHS, 2025).
Most women who have the virus do not develop cervical cancer. However, a small number of women do develop abnormal cells that may become cancerous which is why cervical screening and HPV vaccination is important in helping to prevent cancer.
The HPV vaccine is offered by the NHS to protect against high-risk HPV types. All children aged 12 to 13 are offered the HPV vaccine. It helps protect against the types of HPV that cause most cases of cervical cancer, as well as some other cancers and genital warts (NHS, 2025). See NHS 'HPV Vaccine' for more information ('Resources and Information').
Other risk factors for cervical cancer
Smoking can impair the immune system, and, as such, is a risk factor for cervical cancer, and the risk increases the more you smoke.
Infection with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) or AIDS also reduces immunity and increases the risk of cervical cancer.
Women who have had an organ transplant and have to take drugs to suppress their immune system so that they do not reject the donor organ also increases the risk of cervical cancer.
Along with HPV, other sexually transmitted infections (STIs) increase the risk of developing cervical cancer.
Long-term use (more than 5 years) of the contraceptive pill increases the risk of developing cervical cancer.
It is important that all women go for regular cervical screening to help protect against cervical cancer (see the ‘Cervical Screening’ section).
Ideas about risk factors
Many of the women we interviewed were aware of some of the risk factors associated with cervical cancer and said these risk factors were not present in their own lifestyle.
Many believed it could happen to anybody and felt that they 'were just unlucky'.
She couldn't identify any known cause for why she developed cervical cancer.
She couldn't identify any known cause for why she developed cervical cancer.
One of the things they talk about as well, perhaps more recently, is smoking, have you heard about that?
I haven't no, I've never smoked, never.
She stresses that anybody can get cervical cancer.
She stresses that anybody can get cervical cancer.
A few felt that some of the risk factors may have been present in their own lifestyle, such as HPV, smoking, and long-term use of the contraceptive pill.
Some questioned whether they had developed HPV many years ago and were unaware of it. Others questioned whether their husbands or partners could have given them HPV.
A few were not aware that HPV or smoking can be a risk factor for cervical cancer. Since there are no symptoms for HPV, most people don’t even know they have contracted the virus.
She questions whether she had contracted the human papilloma virus many years before she...
She questions whether she had contracted the human papilloma virus many years before she...
Some women found that it was difficult to deal with having a cancer which had sexual connotations associated with it.
Having a cancer which has sexual connotations can be difficult to deal with.
Having a cancer which has sexual connotations can be difficult to deal with.
I think medical opinion differs anyway, I mean I don't think anyone can say it's a direct causal relationship or anything. It's just one of the factors that seems to be involved when people have cervical cancer. And I think the important thing that came out with talking to people is that people shouldn't blame themselves. Nobody really understands cancer otherwise they'd be able to cure it wouldn't they?. So there's no point blaming yourself. It's very difficult with that sort of cancer in particular in some ways because other sorts of cancers. I suppose you could blame yourself for eating the wrong food or something like that, there again if anybody wants to blame themselves I suppose they will, but there's more connotations with cervical cancer in a way I think that makes it harder for people I think.
She discusses the negative connotations associated with cervical cancer.
She discusses the negative connotations associated with cervical cancer.
I suspect most women in the last sort of 30 or 40 years, may be not 40 but the last 30 years, there aren't that many women who meet the person they are going to spend the rest of their life with and spend the rest of their life with one person. There are some of course but I wouldn't advocate sort of blatant promiscuity but I had a broken marriage I've had a few different relationships and I wouldn't see myself as being wildly promiscuous when I was young but nor was I a little nun either. So I don't blame myself for that, I don't sort of sit and think, because I think that's a bit futile really isn't it, what's the point me sitting around thinking oh if only I'd done this, if only I'd done that.
And so I think that some of the information that's going round about the causes of cervical cancer is actually causing people to think well you only get cervical cancer if you're wildly promiscuous and started having sex when you were sort of 15 or 16 years old and of course that's wrong. I think that there may be are some misconceptions.
Some women were aware of the link between smoking and cervical cancer, but many said they had never smoked. One woman, who was diagnosed 10 years before we spoke with her, explained that she was not aware that smoking was a risk factor for cervical cancer when she was diagnosed. Most of the women who did smoke gave it up when they were told they had cervical cancer.
She wasn't aware that smoking is a risk factor for cervical cancer when she was diagnosed ten...
She wasn't aware that smoking is a risk factor for cervical cancer when she was diagnosed ten...
I no longer smoke, not because I gave up because I'd just sort of made a conscious effort to give up smoking but during the course of my radiotherapy treatment one of the things that I couldn't face was a cigarette and smoke of any sort, it was just one of the things. Another thing was coffee, went off coffee. But it's not something I consciously did and when I'd got to the end of my various treatments, one thing I really, really wanted that I was really looking forward to was a cigarette, but it was like going back to what would've been day one I suppose because I couldn't understand how I ever started smoking in the first place because it was feeling light headed and awful and I thought no I can't do this.
So I didn't make a conscious effort to give up smoking I just did, due to other factors, but I never started again. And yes I have heard about the links but I wasn't conscious of it at the time. It still, smoking isn't good for many different things. I wouldn't encourage anybody to smoke. I feel it's a person's right to choose. I don't condemn anybody for doing it either because once you've started it is very difficult to give up. But I do believe that for many different illnesses it's not a good thing.
A few women mentioned that stress and diet may have been a cause. Others talked about their family history of cancer.
Since these interviews, evidence has shown that family history of the disease is a risk factor for developing squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) type cervical cancer. Researchers do not yet know if this risk factor is due to faulty genes being passed down or if it may be due to shared environmental factors leading to contracting high-risk HPV (Cancer Research UK, 12 September 2023).
A few women mentioned that there needed to be more publicity and awareness of HPV and its link with cervical cancer so that young women would have a better understanding about why they should attend regularly for cervical screening, be vaccinated against HPV, and why they should use condoms to protect themselves during sexual intercourse (for more information see 'Cervical abnormalities CIN3 and CGIN: HPV').
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