An overview of screening and early detection of gynecologic malignancies

Reducing the toll of gynecologic cancer not only requires improving treatment, but also incorporating cancer prevention and detection strategies into clinical practice. Reviewing vulvar, cervical, endometrial, and ovarian cancer--their associated risk factors, mean of prevention and early detection, and signs and symptoms--alerts patients to the potential risks and the detection methods available. Discussing what behaviors, personal characteristics, family history, and exposures increase their risk; what behaviors reduce their risk; and what self-examinations and professional examinations may improve early detection permits health care professionals to write prescriptions for health. Neither major expenditure nor reorganization is required to incorporate cancer prevention and detection into existing clinical practice. Health care professionals who follow screening and detection recommendations appropriate in their own lives issue a consistent message and help bring patients into an active and responsibility-sharing partnership for better health.