How Is Cervical Cancer Treated?

Your stage of cervical cancer and your overall health will determine the method your physician recommends for treating your illness. The primary ways of attacking cervical cancer are surgery, radiation, and chemotherapy (drugs).

Your physician will work with you to choose the best treatment for your cervical cancer based on:

• Your age, overall health, and medical history
• Extent of the disease
• Grade and stage of the cancer
• Your tolerance of specific medicines, procedures, or therapies
• Expectations for the course of the disease
• Your opinion or preference

All treatments have benefits and risks. You and your doctor should carefully balance the potential benefits of any cancer treatment with its potential risks.

After the cervical cancer is diagnosed and staged, your physician will recommend a treatment plan. Treatment may include:

• Surgery - This treatment removes as much cancer as possible and can often cure the cancer. Surgery is used for smaller cancers that have not spread far beyond the cervix. Many types of surgery are used for cervical cancer.
• Radiation therapy - Radiation therapy uses high-energy radiation to kill cancer cells and shrink tumors.
• Chemotherapy - Chemotherapy drugs are used to kill cancerous cells. In most cases, chemotherapy works by stopping cancer cells from growing or reproducing and kills the cells. Different types of chemotherapy drugs work in different ways to kill cancer cells.